Jersey City Rising [Archive] - Page 10

nafco

September 10th, 2007, 10:35 PM

September 2007
Jersey City developers bet on Newark Avenue

Building boom moves inland, reaching final frontier of gentrification

By John Celock
http://www.therealdeal.net//issues/SEPTEMBER_2007/images/1188596323.jpg (javascript:openpopup('http://www.therealdeal.net//issues/SEPTEMBER_2007/images/1188596323.jpg',200,137,true);)
Grove Pointe, a condo project on top of the Grove Street PATH Station, is the anchor of Newark Avenue's revival.

The gentrification of Jersey City is making its way to Newark Avenue, a corridor long described as the final frontier.

Home mostly to discount stores and factories, Newark Avenue was largely overlooked as developers and buyers focused instead on the waterfront neighborhood of Paulus Hook and other downtown areas. As Jersey City's building boom shifts inland, developers have begun to look at the corridor, sandwiched in between the family neighborhood of Van Vorst Park and Hamilton Park, which draws a younger professional population.

Boosters say its time has arrived, though it's not a universally shared view.

"That is the next spot to take off," said Jonathan Schwartz, third-generation owner of Millennium Homes, which seeks to develop buildings along Newark Avenue, where at least 700 new residential units are planned.

This is a turnaround from just a few years ago when the area sat still, resting in the shadow of the new high-rises of the Powerhouse Arts District in the far western portion of Jersey City's downtown.

Grove Pointe, a 700,000-square-foot, 525-unit project being developed by SK Properties, is the anchor of Newark Avenue's revitalization and sits on top of the Grove Street PATH Station. The mostly rental two-tower building had units ready for occupancy at the end of July, with 90 percent of its 67 condos sold last summer. The building contains a total of 458 rental units, along with 20,000 square feet of retail space on the ground floor. Condo prices range from $500,000 to $800,000.

Jonathan Kushner, a principal at Bridgewater-based SK Properties, said the building is mainly drawing young professionals from Manhattan, Brooklyn and suburban New Jersey. The Grove Street PATH Station serves both Midtown and Lower Manhattan, which is a five-minute ride away.

Ji Yoo, an agent with the Armagno Agency, said more young prospective buyers ask about Newark Avenue. She said apartments there run between $300,000 and $500,000 for one-bedrooms and $350,000 to $700,000 for two-bedrooms, some of which are renovated from their original construction. She said prices are in line with parts of downtown Jersey City.

Lauro Arantes, an agent with Weichert Realtors, is not as sanguine as Yoo. He said the area has promise, but few of his clients are looking there, preferring the established downtown neighborhoods and the new development in Liberty Harbor.

"It will take a while," Arantes said. "I have never had clients looking to move there. It is the ugliest part of downtown Jersey City. It is the last part of downtown to be revitalized."

Kushner said the company has been working with the city to redevelop the area surrounding the PATH Station, including a redesign of the station's entrance plaza, and the creation of a pedestrian walkway, which will be open to bus traffic only during rush hour

An avenue in transition

A walk down Newark Avenue finds vacant lots and discount stores dotting the south side of the street, while the north side has newer facades and retail stores. Bob Cotter, Jersey City planning director, said redeveloping the southern portion is a priority. He said the upper floors of many retail buildings and former warehouses could be converted into residential units.

Historically an Italian-American neighborhood, it started to slide 30 years ago as small neighborhood stores closed and many residents moved to the suburbs when crime rates climbed.

Development, particularly in the retail sector, is starting to reverse the trend, says Kushner.

"The city has devoted to making it a place for nightlife," he said. "Part of living in an urban center is coming here at night and walking. It is about having everything at your fingertips."

It's Greek to Me, a restaurant, recently opened across from an upscale art gallery. Two Vietnamese restaurants opened along with LITM, a combination restaurant, bar and art gallery. Two 99-cent stores and a cut-rate clothing store remain, but brokers and local residents have said there are fewer discount stores than a few years ago.

Grove Street, which runs south from the eastern end of Newark Avenue, now has several upscale restaurants, offering Cuban, Middle Eastern and Asian cuisine. As retail space there fills up, Newark Avenue gets the overflow.

Arantes said he is currently working with a client looking at a corner space on Newark Avenue for a new restaurant. Rents have climbed to about $7,000 a month for retail storefronts, making the strip one of the most expensive markets in downtown Jersey City. He noted that the Starbucks planned for the ground floor of Grove Pointe has served as a beacon for new retailers.

"They know it will turn," Arantes said of his retail clients. "They want to be pioneers."

Treetop Development recently purchased a long vacant plot of land on the corner of Newark Avenue and Jersey Avenue, and plans to soon break ground on a 76-unit, two-building complex with 3,500 square feet of retail space.

Adam Mermelstein, a principal at Treetop, said marketing is aimed at buyers who are priced out of Manhattan and other parts of Jersey City. One-bedrooms will start at $375,000 and two-bedrooms will start at $495,000, with a projected completion date of September of 2008. These prices run slightly below new construction in more established parts of downtown Jersey City, where prices start in the low $400,000 range for one-bedrooms and around $600,000 for a two-bedroom.

A traffic twist

The New Jersey Turnpike serves as the western end of the corridor and development is taking hold in this area. The Matzel & Mumford Organization, a unit of homebuilder K. Hovanian, is starting sales on a building abutting the turnpike in the middle of August. The 54-unit midrise building is starting in the high $300,000 range. The turnpike has long been considered the dividing line between the gentrified downtown and the rest of Jersey City.

Newark Avenue will see more traffic under a plan by city officials to turn Christopher Columbus Drive into the city's new gateway. It runs parallel to Newark Avenue, into the city's new gateway. Planning director Cotter said the city has placed new signs on the turnpike directing downtown drivers onto Columbus Drive, which meets up with Newark Avenue in front of Grove Pointe. Columbus Drive is lined with warehouses and many of the buildings on the south side of Newark back up to Columbus. Realtors call increased traffic along Columbus a boon for the area.

"We are seeing big changes," Yoo said. "People are taking pride in Newark Avenue. There are new stores and restaurants opening up all the time."

http://www.therealdeal.net/issues/SEPTEMBER_2007/1188596323.php (http://www.therealdeal.net/issues/SEPTEMBER_2007/1188596323.php)

JCMAN320

September 11th, 2007, 12:54 AM

This is great news this will turn Newark and Grove into our version of Washington St in Hoboken. :)

JCMAN320

September 11th, 2007, 03:34 AM

Bridge to link Newport to Hoboken

Tuesday, September 11, 2007
By CHARLES HACK
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

HOBOKEN - NJ Transit approved a $6.4 million contract yesterday to build a waterfront footbridge that will link Hoboken to the Newport section of Jersey City. The 100-foot concrete bridge will span the mouth of the Long Slip Canal, allowing pedestrians and cyclists to follow the waterfront from the Hoboken Terminal to the Newport section of Jersey City.

The pedestrian bridge will give Newport residents easy access to the light rail, commuter trains, and bus, PATH and ferry services located at the Hoboken Terminal.

Officials said NJ Transit's board of directors awarded the contract to Simpson & Brown Inc., of West Cranford, which will begin work later this fall, with the last paving brick expected to be laid in spring 2009.

The Newport Associates Development Co., which is now developing the old railroad yards at the northern end of the vast Newport site, will build a 1,200-foot temporary section of Hudson River Waterfront Walkway, said Jamie LeFrak, principal of the Lefrak Organization.

The pathway will open on the same day as the bridge and will link to the existing waterfront walkway that ends just north of the Newport Parkway.

LeFrak said the northern portion of the Newport development is 10 years from completion, so the temporary 12-foot-wide pathway will serve the public during construction.

U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, of Hoboken, helped secure federal funds for the project.

JCMAN320

September 11th, 2007, 03:38 AM

READY TO BATTLE FIRES IN THE SKY
High-tech unit has a contact at each building

Tuesday, September 11, 2007
By MICHAELANGELO CONTE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Among the many lessons learned in the tragic events of 9/11 was that fire departments were woefully ill-equipped to battle highrise fires.

The Jersey City Fire Department took it to heart and, with the help of Homeland Security funding, has formed a Highrise and Tunnel Unit aimed at battling blazes in the city's tall buildings, which include the tallest in the state.

"Certainly no one in the state is better equipped to fight highrise fires," said Fire Director Armando Roman yesterday. "We have 160 highrise buildings and this particular unit has a lot of specialized equipment not available on every apparatus."

The 781-foot Goldman Sachs building on Hudson Street is the tallest in the state. The two towers that will comprise Trump Plaza Jersey City will be the two tallest residential buildings in New Jersey until the nearby Metropolitan is built. In the state, only Goldman Sachs will be taller than the Metropolitan.

The specialized fire unit was formed in July and is stationed in the Heights, where the firefighters also have a regular fire truck for responding to non-highrise alarms. Its job is logistics and support at highrise fires.

"Everything about highrise fires is specialized," said Battalion Chief Tim Pierro, who showed off the gear yesterday at the 15-story Newport Office Center III on Washington Boulevard.

Any building over seven stories is classified as a highrise. The Highrise and Tunnel Unit has been called into service numerous times, but there has not been a major highrise fire since its formation.

The unit's large truck carries about 60 compressed air tanks and also has a mechanized device that can climb stairs while carrying 10 of the tanks up into the high floors when elevators are not working.

The vehicle carries specialized high-volume hose nozzles that can be placed on the floor in large, open office spaces so firefighters can back out and let it knock down the flames. The truck has a wheelchair-like machine that runs on tank treads and can carry people, up to 500 pounds, to safety, Roman said.

Also, there is a generator, light system, extension cords, fire extinguishers, light sticks, and fans for forcing smoke in the building to go where they want it to, Roman said.

Roman said Jersey City is the only municipality in the state that has implemented a Highrise Fire Safety Manager system in which every highrise has a specially trained person prepared to work with firefighters in the event of a fire.

Kevin Kenney, chief engineer and fire safety manager of the Newport building, works closely with the Fire Department. In the event of a fire, Kenney can provide any information needed for fighting the fire, including turning off building systems and finding their way around. He will also give firefighters telephones that can be plugged in in elevators and on the upper floors to communicate with the lobby.

The department also has a fire boat, with hose streams that can be trained on anything up to 500 feet from the shoreline, and pump water from the river to land-based firefighters when water is not easily available or when pressure is low.

macmini

September 11th, 2007, 03:29 PM

I don't know if this was already posted, but I just found rendering for 213 Newark Avenue. Just go to http://www.treetopdev.com/main.html and look under current projects.

ianmac47

September 11th, 2007, 07:20 PM

I assume 213 Newark Avenue is also known as 215 newark Avenue?

Old Photos of 215 Nwk below:
http://newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/labels/215%20Newark%20Avenue.html

JCMAN320

September 11th, 2007, 08:58 PM

Yes, Ian you are correct about your assumption.

JCMAN320

September 12th, 2007, 05:12 PM

Avril Lavigne films music video in Jersey City

by Craig Garretson Wednesday September 12, 2007, 12:53 PM
Associated Press

Avril Lavigne performs during the Conde Nast's Fashion Rocks concert in New York at Radio City Music Hall on Thursday.Pop singer Avril Lavigne shot a music video at the Beacon in Jersey City this weekend, a representative for the development announced.

The 21-year-old singer was at the complex -- the former Jersey City Medical Center -- on Saturday night. The video was shot in Murdoch Hall, which also was used in several movies, including Annie and Quiz Show.

According to the press release, the video had a "1920s burlesque" theme, complete with girls in fishnets.

"Ms. Lavigne had two personal masseuses tending to her during the shoot," the press release said.

The video is for "Hot," the third single off her third album, The Best Damn Thing.

JCMAN320

September 12th, 2007, 05:24 PM

Healy says Heights bus service may return

by N. Clark Judd Wednesday September 12, 2007, 9:47 AM

Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy addressed a fuming crowd of Heighs residents last night at the Riverview Neighborhood Association's monthly meeting to answer their questions about bus service changes they say have left them in the dust.

But if a new proposal now in the works gets wheels in Trenton, Healy said, there may be a solution just around the corner.

Healy announced that officials from the city, the neighborhood association and the Central Avenue Special Improvement District have begun talks with NJ Transit about extending a spur of the No. 123 bus to provide service to Manhattan from the Heights.

Currently, the bus goes to the Congress Street Hudson-Bergen Light Rail station from Union City before turning around and heading to New York City via the Lincoln Tunnel.

"It would only be another eight to 10 blocks south to Christ Hospital," Healy said, explaining that NJ Transit could bring the bus down Palisade Avenue along the old route of the No. 10/99S, which Red & Tan in Hudson County moved to Central.

Company officials cited a lack of ridership as the reason for the move.

citybooster

September 13th, 2007, 02:22 PM

macmini

September 14th, 2007, 12:40 PM

SAY DEMOLITION WILL START JAN.
Building in Square will start in April, builders tell city

Friday, September 14, 2007
By KEN THORBOURNE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Demolition and site work for the two-tower development slated for the heart of Journal Square will begin in January, the project's builder told a roomful of Jersey City department heads yesterday.

Actual construction on the foundation and the seven-story base is scheduled to begin next spring, said Bruce Becker, president of Fairfield, Conn.-based Becker + Becker, an architecture, planning, preservation and development firm that has a 12.5 percent stake in the development.

Some of the buildings at the site have been demolished, while others still have tenants operating businesses.

Becker revealed the latest timetable for the $500 million mixed-used development planned for the block adjacent to the Journal Square PATH Transportation Center at a meeting of city officials called by Housing, Economic, Development and Commerce Acting Director Robert Antonicello.

It is the second such gathering for a group Antonicello has dubbed the Smart Development Interdepartmental Team (SDIT), which will be responsible for coordinating and tracking development projects in the city. Yesterday's meeting was roughly 40 percent presentation by Becker, 60 percent brainstorming session.

Along the way, Becker revealed the project was reconfigured from two more or less equal-sized towers to a development that will now feature a north tower rising 58 floors above the seven-story base and a south tower that will add 38 stories to the base.

The redesign makes the project more profitable by taking better advantage of views of the city and upping the number of studio, 1-bedroom, and 2-bedroom rental units from 1,200 to 1,500, he said.

The seven-story base will contain five levels of parking and three levels of retail, both components having one level below grade, Becker said.

A terrace level on the seventh floor will feature a swimming pool, fitness center, and courtyard terrace, he said.

The seven-story base and north tower will be built first and the market will drive when the south tower gets built, Becker said.

The plan goes before the Planning Board on Sept. 25 for site plan approval.

citybooster

September 15th, 2007, 06:54 AM

I saw the renditions of the towers in the Jersey Journal,and they certainly were revised in appearance!I love the cylindrical build of the larger tower and the fact counting the base,the larger one would be 65 stories,at least 700 feet(Is there any specific height info?)It really transforms the Journal Square skyline,located almost 100 feet already above sea level it truly would rise majestically.I hope the market conditions cavaet on building the 45-story tower isn't a red flag about its long term prognosis,hopefully just a sensible reading of the market and not a retrenchment.

Is there potential for several other high rises in the area?I think the towers certainty would be a magnet for the major revitilization of the area. I love the downtown waterfront development,but to bring the center of the city to new glory cannot be anything but a positive move in making Jersey City one of the most dynamic,prominent,competitive world class mid size cities.

JCMAN320

September 15th, 2007, 10:22 PM

Yea city booster there are plenty of low rise buildings that can be raised for new towers walk around that area of the city.

nafco

September 16th, 2007, 06:51 PM

is there a link to these new renderings?

macmini

September 17th, 2007, 12:18 AM

In the Region | New Jersey
Rentals’ New Lease on Life
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2007/09/14/realestate/600-njzo.jpg
Grove Pointe, foreground, and 50 Columbus flank Grove Street PATH station in Jersey City.

By ANTOINETTE MARTIN Published: September 16, 2007

JERSEY CITY

TWO new rental towers have opened here in the past few weeks on either side of the newly rebuilt Grove Street PATH station, with what their developers view as excellent timing.

Even as condominium sales have slowed in this commuter haven and in neighboring Hoboken, according to market reports, these rental units with condo-quality amenities are getting a fervent response, developers say.
At Grove Pointe, which opened on Aug. 10, nearly a third of the 458 apartments were leased within three weeks, said Jonathan Kushner, a principal of SK Properties, the developer.

“Dozens of people from our wait list showed up to claim their apartments before the grand opening,” he said. “People are really excited about the chance to live in a rental building that offers the kind of urban sophistication more commonly found across the river.”

The adjacent 50 Columbus opened just last weekend, with more than 700 names on a list of people expressing interest in its 400 units, said David Barry, president of the Applied Development Company, a joint developer with Panepinto Properties. Seventy-four leases were signed in the first few days, said Mr. Barry.

The buildings, which both have addresses on Christopher Columbus Drive because they are situated at that road’s intersection with Grove Street, are bringing significant change to the previously shabby Grove Street area, said Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy.

Mr. Barry called the area “probably the most underappreciated location on the whole Gold Coast” of New Jersey (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/classifieds/realestate/locations/newjersey/?inline=nyt-geo) right now.

The Hudson riverfront in Jersey City grabbed all the attention of developers and New York City (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/classifieds/realestate/locations/newyork/newyorkcity/manhattan/?inline=nyt-geo) commuters for a long time, Mr. Healy said. “But our entire city is a mass-transit utopia,” he declared. “It is much easier to get to Manhattan (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/classifieds/realestate/locations/newyork/newyorkcity/manhattan/?inline=nyt-geo) from here than from any of the four boroughs — and that is the most important reason why we are a successful city.”

The new Hudson-Bergen light rail system, which runs north-south and connects with the east-west PATH trains, has increased the number of areas with quick commutes, Mr. Healy noted. It is possible to get to Manhattan in 20 minutes, even with a light rail stop, he said. Jersey City also has four ferry stops, which provide 20-minute rides to Manhattan.

It was SK that spent $1 million on the Grove Street PATH station, then built Grove Pointe — which also has 67 condo units, almost all sold a year ago, Mr. Kushner said — on top of it. “It’s a six-minute ride to downtown Manhattan,” he said, “and 11 minutes to Midtown. All residents have to do is step out the front door.”

Grove Pointe and 50 Columbus both have the amenities required to make them competitive: designer interiors, fitness and recreation centers, rooftop decks with pools, 24-hour door attendants, and enclosed parking. The rents are steep by Jersey City standards, but still lower than in Manhattan.

At Grove Pointe, rental rates for studios range from $1,800 to $2,000 per month. One-bedroom units rent for $2,050 to $2,575, and two-bedroom apartments go for $2,595 to $3,350.

At 50 Columbus, studios are $1,600 to $1,800 per month, one-bedrooms rent for $1,850 to $2,500, and two-bedrooms are $2,800 to $3,500. Also, there are six three-bedroom apartments on the top three floors, each with 2,245 square feet of space, available for $5,300 to $6,300 per month, depending on the floor.

Designed by the Manhattan architect Costas Kondylis, who also designed a rental complex rising in Fort Lee called the Palisades, 50 Columbus is a 36-story stone-and-glass structure.

The apartments have floor-to-ceiling windows, and many offer views of the Manhattan skyline and the Statue of Liberty. Kitchen counters are antique pearl quartz, said Jackie Urgo, president of the Marketing Directors, the leasing agent for both 50 Columbus and Grove Pointe. Bathroom vanities have marble tops. Living areas have hardwood floors; bedrooms are carpeted.

DeWitt Tishman Architects of Manhattan designed Grove Pointe, a 30-story tiered brick-and-stone structure with abundant glass. The firm has been active in Jersey City and Hoboken, helping create a distinctive riverbank skyline over the past decade. Grove Pointe’s kitchens have granite countertops, and baths have Kohler fixtures, Ms. Urgo said, adding that every apartment comes with a full-size stackable washer and dryer.
“I think it is the amenity package that people are most enthusiastic about, though,” said Mr. Kushner about Grove Pointe — and 50 Columbus inspired Mr. Barry to echo that remark.

At 50 Columbus, taking up an entire floor, is a Club H Fitness Center and Spa, a new link in a chain founded in Hoboken and operating in Manhattan as well.

Grove Pointe offers a two-story Fitness Club with a weight room, yoga studio, meditation area and showers; and a recreation area with a billiards table, screening room and catering kitchen.

The annual fee at each place is $500, which the developers pointed out is less than the cost of a year’s membership at most health clubs.

InsideScoop

September 17th, 2007, 09:34 AM

My brother works at Newport Mall and does a lot of walking in the area.Hudson Exchange looked like for the second time was going to get prepared,but a small crane sits there,a few pile drivings,and little else for two weeks now.They've got the damn abatements,they are in a picture perfect location which even in an economic downturn in the housing market,would never fail to attract lots of interest.Goin'up,or playing with our heads again?

Also,Inside Scoop mentioned in his list of apparently still ongoing /on hold projects a rental behind 111 First,that would probably get the go ahead soon.Any info on the size,scope and possibilty this will actually happen?111 First isn't even supposed to go for Planning Board approval until sometime around May..what gives?

RE: Hudson Exchange - not sure if you are referring to the Monaco/San Remo projects by the Doubletree, the Pep Boys - Metropolitan Tower, or the rest of the planned demolition of the retail facility, but I can tell you that ALL are on hold due to a lack of financing. Metropolitan was planned as a condo - not happening. Monaco/San Remo, etc were planned as rentals, but they don't have the financing for it so its on hold probably until the credit squeeze ends (maybe 2 years?). Quick side note - in JC, "abatements" benefit the City not the developer. This is JC not NYC. In JC the "abatement" refers to the abatement of the County's tax which is then essentially paid to the City instead of the County.

RE: 111 First - apparently bids on the original design came back with a structural cost that was 400% what a normal design costs. The building was planned as a condo and so it will not be able to get financing at this time and it will also have to be cut back on the structural frills.

RE: Rental behind 111 First - this is a relatively simple building of about 300+ units and will likely go forward.

macmini

September 17th, 2007, 10:43 AM

RE: Hudson Exchange - not sure if you are referring to the Monaco/San Remo projects by the Doubletree, the Pep Boys - Metropolitan Tower, or the rest of the planned demolition of the retail facility, but I can tell you that ALL are on hold due to a lack of financing. Metropolitan was planned as a condo - not happening. Monaco/San Remo, etc were planned as rentals, but they don't have the financing for it so its on hold probably until the credit squeeze ends (maybe 2 years?). Quick side note - in JC, "abatements" benefit the City not the developer. This is JC not NYC. In JC the "abatement" refers to the abatement of the County's tax which is then essentially paid to the City instead of the County.

RE: 111 First - apparently bids on the original design came back with a structural cost that was 400% what a normal design costs. The building was planned as a condo and so it will not be able to get financing at this time and it will also have to be cut back on the structural frills.

RE: Rental behind 111 First - this is a relatively simple building of about 300+ units and will likely go forward.

111 First Street is still in the proposal stage so I don't know how you get it's on hold and it will not go to the planning board until 2008. The Metropolitan Tower was never going to be a condo it was planned as a rental from the begging.

Yes there is a credit crunch, but that dose not mean that all building has stop. The building of condo's and house have slowed dramatically as it should since their is a huge supply of homes on the market. So project like Monaco/San Remo have a better chance of getting built rentals are ideal right now.

JCMAN320

September 18th, 2007, 04:07 PM

Jersey City opens new construction code office

by The Jersey Journal Tuesday September 18, 2007, 9:53 AM

Jersey City has opened a satellite construction code office on Martin Luther King Drive, a move that comes in the wake of complaints from Ward F residents about builders not following city codes.

Mayor Jerramiah Healy was scheduled to preside over a ribbon cutting this morning at the new office, at the King Drive Hub, 360 Martin Luther King Drive.

ianmac47

September 18th, 2007, 04:07 PM

So 1/2 point rate cut-- do you think it will be enough to boost available financing for large scale projects, especially as the rental market continues to be strong?

66nexus

September 18th, 2007, 04:32 PM

So 1/2 point rate cut-- do you think it will be enough to boost available financing for large scale projects, especially as the rental market continues to be strong?

I hope it does because .5 rate is a lot of money when dealing with commercial and/or large real-estate projects

tbal

September 18th, 2007, 04:48 PM

citybooster

September 18th, 2007, 10:25 PM

citybooster - there aren't only many lowrise structures that are ripe for demolition, there are several sizable parking lots in the JSQ area.

I too think the rate cut will help boost financing power of the developers...but only time will tell.

btw - the biggest eyesore on Newark Ave, 272 Newark Ave, is getting torn down today to make way for the first of several 5+ story buildings on downtown JC's main retail corridor. It's good to see it go and I can't wait to see what replaces it!Great to hear regarding the Journal Square area.There are some really nice buildings architecturally as well that can be used to house retail/residential projects ,both small and mid-rise.Beyond the City Center projects that hold out the most hope to finally put Journal Square back on the map,the disappointingly bland State apartments and the abysmal Journal Square Plaza I and II office complex mistakes don't do such a potentially vibrant residential/commercial/entertainment hub any justice.

I like what I hear about the Newark Avenue projects.Jersey City definitely should attempt to spread the economic development throughout the city,not just the waterfront,as vital as it is.

hazard1

September 19th, 2007, 03:01 AM

Highrises are nice, but developers and the city should try, whenever possible, to preserve the character of the neigborhood by renovating and preserving existing historic buildings.

Most of the delapidated buidings in the journal square area, and JC in general were built prewar by highly trained craftmen.

Hidden behind the cheap awnings, faux stonework, layers of paint and drop ceilings are works of art. To lose low rise pedestrian friendly structures to large sun blocking highrises building would be a shame.

JCMAN320

September 19th, 2007, 11:52 AM

Hazard I agree, and the city has been doing that. Homes are being rehabbed and the city has bought some buildings for city offices and renovated them.

wander118

September 19th, 2007, 12:40 PM

infoshare

September 19th, 2007, 01:08 PM

old buildings are like the mets bullpen..good on paper, but don't deliver out in the real world! :rolleyes: :cool:

Brilliant. Thanks for the laugh-out-loud moment; very clever (and funny) observation.

cheers

JCMAN320

September 19th, 2007, 01:29 PM

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Merrill Considers Jersey City

According to the http://www.nypost.com/seven/09192007/business/for_merrill__size_counts.htm, Merrill Lynch may expand facilities in Jersey City. This might very well be a bit of blustering to convince New York officials they deserve the same tax subsidies handed out to Goldman Sachs. On the other hand, Merrill already has offices on this side of the Hudson River, and building in Jersey City is faster and cheaper than Manhattan.

hazard1

September 20th, 2007, 12:31 AM

old buildings are nice to look at, but they can also be a pain to live in. creeky stairs and floors, old plumbing, low basement ceilings, basement plumbing, drafty windows..out dated electrical work. I live in an old house, and its not nearly as "fun" as living in a nice new (or even just newer ) house.

old buildings are like the mets bullpen..good on paper, but don't deliver out in the real world! :rolleyes: :cool:

wander118, I sympathize with your draft and other issues, but you may have missed a key word/point in my post - "renovate" as to:

restore to a former better state (as by cleaning, repairing, or rebuilding).

wander118

September 20th, 2007, 02:46 PM

wander118, I sympathize with your draft and other issues, but you may have missed a key word/point in my post - "renovate" as to:

restore to a former better state (as by cleaning, repairing, or rebuilding).

I hear ya. If someone's going to gut a buidling and modernize it, and still retain the character of an older building, then you won't run into the same problems I described. Althought you might be someone stifled in what you can do, considering you're working in a preexisting framework. I guess for me, personally, I'm sick of living in old buildings! i want something new. :)

wander118

September 20th, 2007, 02:46 PM

Brilliant. Thanks for the laugh-out-loud moment; very clever (and funny) observation.

cheers

and the mets finally won one last night! its a miracle! :)

JCMAN320

September 20th, 2007, 06:54 PM

Contractors to beat path to the 'Hub' for permits

Thursday, September 20, 2007
By KEN THORBOURNE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Jersey City's Construction Code Office opened a satellite this week inside the Extra Supermarket at "The Hub" shopping center on Martin Luther King Drive.

The office is part of a continuing effort to bring foot traffic to the Hub and take city services off the waterfront, city officials said.

The Construction Code Office - until now only located at 30 Montgomery St. - is where contractors file for building permits, receive certificates of occupancy, pay sewer connection fees, and register with the city, officials said.

Located one block off the waterfront, parking at 30 Montgomery St. is a hassle, while at the Hub there's an open lot and the parking is free.

"The primary complaint about the Construction Code Office is that it is inaccessible to the general public," said Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy at Tuesday's ribbon-cutting.

"This new office offers a remedy to that problem," Healy added. "There is ample parking and it is easy to locate. With this new location we are bringing services to the people."

This office represents the third city office that's opened at the financially challenged shopping complex.

Also there is the Police Community Relations Unit and the Division of Commerce, which provides most non-food-related licenses.

The construction satellite office will have a staff of three and be open weekdays 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., officials said. The turnaround time on building permits is two days, they said.

"I'm excited about these city services," said Ward F Councilwoman Viola Richardson. "And it brings activity down to the Hub."

JCMAN320

September 20th, 2007, 07:03 PM

State DOT, city in talks today on 440 flooding

Thursday, September 20, 2007
By KEN THORBOURNE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

It's no secret to Country Village residents, dozens of business owners or the thousands of commuters who try to cross the intersection of Route 440 and Communipaw Avenue when it rains - that when it rains, it floods along Route 440 in Jersey City.

Jersey City officials hope to strike a deal today with the state Department of Transportation to have the state regularly clean and maintain DOT-owned catch basins and outfall pipes along the route.

MUA Executive Director Daniel F. Becht and MUA Chief Engineer Joseph Bechmeyer say it is DOT's lax oversight in the upkeep of these water conduits that is responsible for the severe flooding along the route.

"DOT takes responsibility for the maintenance of Route 440 and its drainage system," said DOT spokeswoman Erin Phallon. "We're meeting with Jersey City tomorrow to develop a plan for the future maintenance of the drainage system."

DOT Supervising Engineer Anthony Gould will attend today's meeting in Jersey City, Becht said. It is the result of a meeting held last week with DOT Commissioner Kris Kolluri, which was set up and attended by state Sen. Joseph V. Doria Jr., Bayonne mayor.

Ward A Councilman Michael Sottolano, who also attended last week's meeting, accused the DOT of throwing up roadblocks when Jersey City offered to use its own resources.

"We could have cleared a couple of outfalls already," Sottolano said. "They (DOT officials) are totally dragging their feet."

The DOT balked because Jersey City wanted to be reimbursed and wanted a "blank check" to do the work, Phallon responded.

"Although Jersey City offered to clean the catch basins, they were unable to provide a cost estimate, a traffic plan, a construction plan, or any assurances or indemnification to protect the roadway in case of a construction problem," Phallon said.

-------------------------------------

JCMAN Thought Of The Day: The DOT does a piss poor job in general of maintianing 440. They don't cut the medians unless they are near 3 ft tall, and when they do, they don't even pick up the litter that has collected in them, they just mow over it cutting it up into smaller pieces of litter. About damm time that JC calls the BS card on them.

tbal

September 21st, 2007, 12:45 AM

At the Zoning Board meeting this evening, developer Vincent Perez said that he intends on beginning construciton "immediately" on a 5-story, 34-unit building on Bay Street near Grove Street. It will take the place of one of the largest remaining parking lots near the Newark Ave retail corridor as well as a small deteriorating building. I believe only two members of the Board gave the project a "no" vote after residents of nearby 227 and 229 Bay Street voiced concerns over the increased height of the building (the area is zoned for a maximum building height of 40 ft, but 217 Bay will be 61 ft in height). Of course, the property has already changed hands since being approved for development several months ago, so it may in fact switch hands again before anything is built on it. At least one person questioned whether the property would switch hands again once approvals were granted.

The building looked like it would fit into the surrounding neighborhood with its historical-looking features, but some area residents didn't like the mix of red brick and green paneling.

It should be interesting to see how soon this thing breaks ground if it is in fact to move forward soon...

JCexpert558

September 21st, 2007, 10:32 PM

I cant wait till all these futuristic buildings are built for JC. It will really bring out the skyline:)

BrooklynRider

September 23rd, 2007, 11:25 PM

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd121/BrooklynRiderRob/EighthAve24thStreet200709160375.jpg

66nexus

September 23rd, 2007, 11:33 PM

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd121/BrooklynRiderRob/EighthAve24thStreet200709160375.jpg

Undeniable

BrooklynRider

September 24th, 2007, 12:01 AM

It's my little gift to JCMan320. :)

JCMAN320

September 24th, 2007, 01:09 AM

Thx Brooklynrider much appreciated, I'll return the favor. :)

tbal

September 28th, 2007, 12:08 AM

Found this on an engineering company's website regarding 109 Columbus (currently U/C, but construction has been on hold for a few months now...):

"EP Engineering provided full MEP design services for this new 50,000 square foot mixed use building containing 18 residential units and a multi-floor retail space. EP Engineering’s services on this project included HVAC, electrical, plumbing, and fire protection systems. The project included the design of a new electrical service, building transformer vault, and the design of new plumbing utility connections. 109-113 Columbus Drive is currently under construction."

Link: http://epengineer.com/columbus_drive.htm

(P.S. this thread was falling wayyyy to far down the list, so I had to do something to bump it up ;) )

ianmac47

September 29th, 2007, 02:45 PM

Photos:
77 Hudson http://newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/2007/09/77-hudson-street.html

W Hotel
http://newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/2007/09/w-hotel-tower.html

JCMAN320

October 1st, 2007, 10:28 AM

Talks on ending floods on 440

Monday, October 01, 2007

Jersey City officials are hopeful that a sit-down held last week with state Department of Transportation officials will lead to the end of severe flooding along Route 440.

At the Sept. 20 meeting, DOT brass assumed responsibility for clearing the clogged, DOT-owned catch basins and outfall pipes along the route, but no timetable was nailed down, MUA Chief Engineer Joseph Beckmeyer said.

"They (DOT) said they would begin the cleaning operation," Beckmeyer said. "They didn't give me a schedule. They had to review a contract with their private hauler. They were going to get back to me."

A few weeks ago, the MUA offered to do the work - and then send DOT the bill.

The state balked at that arrangement since it didn't want to give the MUA a "blank check," plus there were unresolved traffic and indemnification issues, DOT spokeswoman Erin Phalon said.

The flooding along Route 440 has hit businesses and Country Village residents hard, and often turns the intersection of Communipaw Avenue and Route 440 into a lake, MUA officials said.

"Hopefully there is going to be full cooperation and the problem will be solved," Beckmeyer said.

KEN THORBOURNE

TimmyG

October 2nd, 2007, 12:11 PM

Photos:
77 Hudson http://newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/2007/09/77-hudson-street.html

W Hotel
http://newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/2007/09/w-hotel-tower.html

Thanks ianmac. I'm glad you are updating your site again.

tbal

October 2nd, 2007, 10:23 PM

At tonight's Planning Board meeting, Multi-Employer Property Trust (MEPT) Journal Square Urban Renewal LLC (wow, that was a mouthful) presented its plans for the City Center project proposed for One Journal Square. Architect Bruce Becker of Becker & Becker Associates explained the redesign of the structure, stating it was due in part to a desire to have "direct views of the River from virtually every unit" as well as to add a sense of dramaticism to the area. There was some concern about increased traffic being brought to the area with the addition of the 783-space parking deck to Journal Square, but traffic engineer John Pavlovich indicated that, according to traffic studies, only about 18-25 trips would be added to the traffic load of the area during peak commuting hours.

Mr. Becker also mentioned that, although it hasn't yet been achieved as part of the overall design, his firm has set achieving LEED certification as a goal for the project.

The Planning Board approved the project unamimously, although requiring seventeen (17) conditions to be met before final approval is granted. Two conditions that were specifically emphasized were that 1. a significant number of parking spaces on the first floor be designated for retail, with signage indicating this purpose; and 2. transformers be relocated in the plans from the pedestrian plaza area to a more appropriate area.

I will be posting renderings once I receive them...the design looked impressive.

JCMAN320

October 3rd, 2007, 04:43 AM

Great to hear Tbal and great reporting. I can't wait for this project!!! :)

Heights boosters put spot on cable TV

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

Jersey City Heights now has its own TV commercial.

Scheduled to run this fall on Comcast cable channels, including ESPN, USA, and Comedy Central, the 30-second spot is the brainchild of the Central Avenue Special Improvement District.

Michael Yun, president of the merchants' group, said his organization wanted to let people know The Heights is "a good place to live and have a home."

"When people talk about Jersey City, they talk about the waterfront," Yun said. "But we have a lot of good things."

Pershing Field, Washington Park, Reservoir No. 3, and the 240 stores along Central Avenue are among the assets highlighted in the spot.

According to Yun, his group paid $3,000 to produce and have the commercial run 1,600 times. Comcast picked up the cost for running the first 800 spots, he said.

KEN THORBOURNE

TimmyG

October 3rd, 2007, 02:24 PM

I saw some construction going on just south of Liberty State Park today. I assume it's for the clubhouse of the golf course. Are the towers at the golf course going to get built, or is the project dead?

BrooklynRider

October 3rd, 2007, 10:28 PM

Photos:
77 Hudson http://newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/2007/09/77-hudson-street.html

W Hotel
http://newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/2007/09/w-hotel-tower.html

That's your site? I'll have to bookmark it. Great photos.

JCMAN320

October 4th, 2007, 12:31 AM

TimmyG the clubhouse has the steel going up, but that curved piece of concrete structure next to the entrance to LIberty State Park is the foundation for the towers as far as I know.

injcsince81

October 4th, 2007, 04:20 PM

Liberty National clubhouse is that steel structure.

The long, concrete structure leading to it is the elevated driveway (remember, the whole site is a pit).

I don't think they're pouring foundations for the towers yet.

I heard 2009 date for the first tower, but now I think it will be the START.

They will use 2009 Barclay's PGA tournament at LN to market the tower, I'm pretty sure.

JCMAN320

October 4th, 2007, 11:23 PM

Jersey City to unveil new OEM center

by The Jersey Journal Thursday October 04, 2007, 9:23 AM

Jersey City officials will unveil a brand-new, $1.5 million Office of Emergency Management complex today.

At a 2 p.m. ceremony at the agency's Summit Avenue headquarters, the city will cut the ribbon on the new center, which has been upgraded with grants from the federal Department of Homeland Security.

The new center will provide a direct link into the city's Closed Circuit TV system and police and fire mobile command units.

"Due to our location, the size of our city, and our critical infrastructure, having a state-of-the-art OEM facility is something we have been in great need of," Mayor Jerramiah Healy said in a written statement.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

HCBC to help keep reservoir in shape

by The Jersey Journal Thursday October 04, 2007, 9:39 AM

Employees of HSBC Bank will be out today helping to beautify the Jersey City Reservoir, which has been preserved as a natural area.

More than 30 employees will volunteer this morning to prune branches, weed, and plant seeds as part of the bank's Climate Partnership program, an initiative help combat global warming.

JCMAN320

October 4th, 2007, 11:25 PM

Final OK for Journal Square plan

by Ken Thorbourne Thursday October 04, 2007, 5:18 PM

The two-tower development planned for the old Hotel on the Square block in Journal Square has received final site plan approval from the Jersey City Planning Board.

In a 7-0 vote on Tuesday, the board gave the half a billion dollar mixed-use project a unanimous thumbs up.

"The new buildings are quite impressive, very stylish," Leon Yost, the board's vice chairman, said today. "These are going to be icons for Jersey City."

The 1,500-unit project is to consist of a 7-story base with retail and parking, and two residential towers rising from the base -- a 58-story north tower and a 38-story south tower. Construction is scheduled to start in the spring.

The development team is comprised of three entities: The Multi-Employer Property Trust based in Bethesda, Md., a national real estate equity fund that invests union pension funds; Harwood Properties based in Jersey City; and the Fairfield, Conn.- headquartered Becker + Becker, an architecture, planning, preservation and development firm.

With $6.2 billion in assets, MEPT is expected to self-finance most of the construction.

"When pension funds start investing in your town, you know you're on solid ground," said Planning Director Robert D. Cotter. "They have deep pockets and need guaranteed return over the long haul. They are looking for sure things."

kljc

October 5th, 2007, 10:10 AM

Roberts criticizes top cop for being lax on vagrants

Wednesday, October 03, 2007
Hoboken Mayor David Roberts may soon be getting into another public feud with a top-ranking city official.
Roberts says he's fed up with "vagrants" - i.e. homeless people - panhandling, relieving themselves in public and using Pier A as their own urban resort when they bathe in the fountain and sleep on the park's benches.
He says the city has ordinances on the books that prohibit such behavior, but Police Chief Carmen LaBruno has not made enforcing these public nuisance laws a priority.
"I believe we can do better a job," Roberts said. "I am a supporter of the homeless and have supported the city's homeless shelter, but that doesn't mean our residents should have to put up with what they have to put up with."
Roberts said a number of factors make the Mile Square City a favorite spot for the region's homeless, including the lack of homeless shelters in nearby towns, NJ Transit's push to remove squatters from its old train terminal property and the "generosity" of local residents toward panhandlers.
LaBruno could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Jersey City is close to inking a deal with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey over the relocation of the Powerhouse substation that will help pave the way for highly-anticipated renovation of the historic Powerhouse building itself.

Port Authority officials have already agreed that the substation needs to be removed and replaced, but exactly where the new station will be built still needs to be resolved.

The two targeted locations are a triangle-shaped piece of city-owned land just north of the Powerhouse, on Washington Boulevard, and a 10,000-square-foot piece of property adjacent to the Butler building, owned by developer Bob Lier.

Sources tell me that the city prefers the Butler building property, but such a move presents a host of problems.

Lier had made it no secret that he wants to erect a high-rise residential tower through the heart of the historic Butler building, a proposal that city officials - who label the building iconic -are dead set against.

City officials are willing to allow Lier to add 100 feet to a proposed 250-foot building slated for parking lot to the south of the Butler building in exchange for placing the substation on his property.

That does not appear to be enough of a carrot for Lier, and city officials appear reluctant to force the substation on the property through eminent domain - out of fear of lengthy and costly litigation.

That being said, residents can expect the substation to land at the triangle park. At this pace, city officials said the Powerhouse building, scheduled to become a world-class arts and entertainment center, will be at least partially operational within five years.

Toll Brothers officials met with members of the Powerhouse Arts District Neighborhood Association last week to discuss their controversial plans for the historic Manischewitz building on Bay Street.

Tight-lipped company officials provided the group with their "conceptual" plans, and last night they held a work session with PADNA members who want to voice their problems.

Company officials told me they want to work with the neighborhood residents and they say the meetings are a vehicle to gauge public opinion and make changes if necessary - a point that would be commendable if it were true.

Just yesterday, sources tell me, the company was planning to submit its planning board application for zoning changes, just hours before they were scheduled to meet with PADNA members about their concerns.

The premature submission of the application raises serious questions about how seriously company officials took the meetings, reducing them to a typical public relations tactic that is more window dressing than private-public cooperation.

Such tactics are going to make an already skeptical neighborhood group even more critical, especially in the face of substantial zoning changes required for the company to erect three residential towers ranging from roughly 300 to 400 feet, along with a host of other controversial plans.
© 2007 The Jersey Journal © 2007 NJ.com All Rights Reserved.

ianmac47

October 5th, 2007, 10:18 AM

I'm guessing Lier's Tower is the lot bound by Morgan, Stueben, and Warren Streets?

kljc

October 5th, 2007, 02:51 PM

I'm guessing Lier's Tower is the lot bound by Morgan, Stueben, and Warren Streets?

That's the parking lot. Current zoning allows for 250 feet.

Bob Leir wants his tower to rise from the center of the nine-story brick Butler Brothers building (Bay/Morgan/Warren).

I'm guessing the 10,000 sq. foot property Port Authority wants is the one level section of Butler Bros. on the corner of Bay and Washington.

A bit of historical information copied from
http://www.jclandmarks.org/nomination-warehousedistrict.shtml
... "The power plant for the warehouse was located in a twenty-foot high section at the corner of Washington and Bay St. (Sanborn, 1906 Map). The brick and metal chimney still exists."

ianmac47

October 5th, 2007, 03:47 PM

The parking lot is the big one south of Butler and west of Washington Commons? not the smaller lot north of Columbus?

JCMAN320

October 5th, 2007, 04:48 PM

Correct Ianmac. OMFG there are the new renderings for the towers on Journal Square in the Jersey Journal. It is f'n amazing. These towers will be seen from all over!!!! I can't wait OMG!!!!!!! It's like the AOL Time Warner Center but much better and taller. I CAN"T WAIT!!

I will scour for renderings online!!!:)

JCMAN320

October 5th, 2007, 05:16 PM

Home for emergency command

Friday, October 05, 2007
By KEN THORBOURNE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

$2M center is regional in scope

Jersey City is now disaster central - in a good way.

Officials cut the ribbon on a $2 million state-of-the-art emergency operations center yesterday. It's a facility, they said, that is unparalleled in the state.

"Due to our location, the size of our city, and our critical infrastructure, having a state-of-the-art OEM facility is something we have been in great need of," said Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy.

"We now have the technology that will allow us to keep our citizens safe, which has always been my highest priority," Healy added.

Dozens of officials attended the ribbon-cutting, including Hudson County Executive Thomas DeGise, Police Chief Thomas Comey, several council members, and perhaps as a statement of the regional importance of this facility, representatives of State Police and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

The facility is a essentially a large room, with enough computers, desks, and telephones to accommodate more than 30 representatives from various agencies.

The focal point of the room is a wall-sized screen that is connected to the city's roughly 68 closed-circuit televisions, as well as CCTVs controlled by the Port Authority and NJ Transit.

Yesterday, for example, the screen displayed "real time" images from the Journal Square PATH station, the Holland Tunnel and various intersections around the city as well as CNN and MSNBC.

The facility - the location of which officials asked not be disclosed - was paid for with federal Homeland Security money that flowed through the state to a regional seven-county committee that allocated the money for Jersey City.

General Projection Systems, a Florida-based company, designed and built the center, said Greg Kierce, the city's OEM Coordinator.

Randall Richardson, grants administrator for the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness, said spending the money in Jersey City made sense.

"Jersey City has a dense population and it is packed with critical infrastructure - transportation, manufacturing, chemical," Richardson said. "Jersey City and Hudson County have the risk, and that's why they get the dollars they do."

Malcontent

October 5th, 2007, 05:46 PM

I can't wait to see renderings of the JSQ buildings!!!

Malcontent

October 5th, 2007, 05:50 PM

I looked on the Jersey Journal website, but couldn't find anything. They only had the story, but no pictures.

JCMAN320

October 5th, 2007, 06:25 PM

There are only in the paper mal.

Weekend of art, music and more kicks off at 6 tonight

by The Jersey Journal Friday October 05, 2007, 1:30 PM

http://blog.nj.com/hudsoncountynow_impact/2007/10/large_ztour4.jpg
Reena Rose Sibayan
Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy takes in some art at the Canco building, one of the stops on this weekend's Jersey City Artists Studio Tour.

No excuses this weekend! Whatever you've got planned, whatever errands you have to run, there'll still be time to enjoy the burgeoning art scene on this side of the Hudson River.

From 6 tonight until at least 6 Sunday night, the Jersey City Artists Studio Tour will offer a once-a-year chance to enjoy art, music and performances as well as the opportunity to go behind the scenes, meet artists and see where and how art is made.

The tour, sponsored and organized by the Jersey City Division of Cultural Affairs and the local artists organization ProArts, features hundreds of artists represented at 73 stops. Most of the stops are in Downtown Jersey City, but a number of stops, including one mega-group space off Journal Square, are in other parts of the city.

Get The Jersey Journal's tour map here. Download file. Use the magnifying glass tool to zoom in and out.

Today's Journal includes highlights in a special section:

*Jersey City to pulsate with art and music during 17th annual tour;
*Art of the scam, about an art world play being staged;
*From graffiti to gallery, a profile of Jersey City artist/gallery owner Orlando Reyes;
*Golden moment, a look at a gallery opening its doors for the very first time this weekend.

Here's a list of some of the events and hotspots:

Canco Lofts Friday Night Opening Party - 50 Dey St., No 70 on the tour map

6-7 p.m. Music by Andrew Sullivan

7:15-7:30 p.m. Wine tasting demonstration by Make Wine With Us

7:30-8:15 p.m. Music by Architeuthis Walks on Land

8-8:30 p.m. Action painting by Eiji Matsukubo

8:30-8:40 p.m. Music by Drew & the Medicinal Pen

8:45-9 p.m. Candle Dance Performance by Jezibell from PURE NYC

9:15 p.m. Fashion show by Another Man's Treasure

Fourth Street Music Festival, Newark Avenue and Fourth Street, Saturday, No. 39

1:30 p.m. The Snapp Tones

3 p.m. The Swiggs

4 p.m. Born at Sea

5 p.m. One Foot In

6 p.m. Just Married

7 p.m. Water Under Water

8 p.m. James Black Acoustic

8:20 p.m. Fashion Show by Another Man's Treasure

9 p.m. Fourth Street All-Star Jam

Grace Church Van Vorst, 39 Erie St., No. 32

The Grace Church Group Show organized by Greg Brickey, Saturday and Sunday, 12 to 6 p.m.

Waldo Lofts, 159 Second St., No. 3

INside/OUTside at Waldo Lofts. OUTside is curated by Brian Gustafson and Asha Ganpat Saturday and Sunday, 12 to 6 p.m.

Curious Matter, 272 Fifth St., No. 47

Apparition by Curious Matter Saturday and Sunday, 12 to 6 p.m.

Mary Benson Gallery, 369 Third St., No. 38

Earthscapes Studio Tour Performance Schedule

Saturday:

12-12:30 p.m.: Joe Johnson, guitar

1-1:30 p.m.: A Cappella Mary Aiken, Timothy Jones

1:30-2:30 p.m.: Poetry/Open mic with Beth Bentley

3-6 p.m.: ThingNY contemporary chamber music

7-10 p.m.: Bryan Benninghove

Sunday:

12:-12:30 p.m.: Joe Johnson, guitar

12:30-4 p.m.: Poetry/Open mic with Beth Bentley

4:30-5:30 p.m.: Kevin Spyker & Company

Jersey City Landmarks Conservancy Walking Tours, 150 Bay St., No. 1

Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m. Everyone is invited to tour the remnants of Jersey City's once-storied waterfront industrial past. In addition to the walking tour, you will have access to several artists' studios within the district, as well as shuttle access to other artists' sites citywide.

nafco

October 6th, 2007, 04:28 PM

Its too bad they cant relocate the powerhouse substation anywhere else because losing that triangle park to what will be an eyesore is really dissapointing. A park, or playground would be ideal there, especially when the area is a lot more built up in a few years.

btw, also looking foward to the JSQ pics!

tbal

October 6th, 2007, 05:28 PM

Check out newyorkssixth.com for One Journal Square info & a rendering of the complex....

nafco

October 6th, 2007, 06:48 PM

awesome! thats def going to dominate the skyline of jsq, and i think it looks better than trump too. I wonder if they are still planning on having the news ticker around the side of the bldg.

Malcontent

October 6th, 2007, 08:59 PM

Wow, the JSQ building look nice!

I would hope that they can make the new power substation look some what presentable. Especially with it being that close to the redeveloped powerhouse. Maybe than can do something very unique.

TimmyG

October 6th, 2007, 09:53 PM

Impressive renderings of One Journal Square. I hope all the detailing will be done well, so it won't look cheap.

investordude

October 7th, 2007, 12:45 AM

Some biographic details about the new Jersey City redevelopment agency director, who apparently was appointed recently.

http://www.hudsonreporter.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=18891689&BRD=1291&PAG=461&dept_id=523586&rfi=6

kljc

October 8th, 2007, 01:14 PM

Its too bad they cant relocate the powerhouse substation anywhere else because losing that triangle park to what will be an eyesore is really disappointing. A park, or playground would be ideal there, especially when the area is a lot more built up in a few years.

The triangle will be at the intersection of a future traffic light where 5 streets converge; Washington Street is scheduled to be one way SOUTH where Green St. (one way NORTH) intersects with Washington and Second St.
There are two Light Rail crossings on either side of the triangle; one on Green and the other already on Washington. So with traffic lights and Light Rail trains it will be in middle of lots of noise, exhaust, gridlock, etc.

Not sure what the City is thinking with the complicated one way streets on First, Second, Bay, Washington and Green... mixed with Light Rail trains -- cars will be making lots of detours through the BJ parking lot.

Is it possible to bury the substation?

TimmyG

October 8th, 2007, 04:30 PM

I suppose the substation could be buried, but it could get expensive to make sure it wouldn't flood. You'd have to find a developer to pay for it, maybe as a condition for receiving approval of a project.

sfenn1117

October 8th, 2007, 06:32 PM

Hamilton

October 8th, 2007, 07:44 PM

Definitely not as tall, and i think most would agree not any better. Impressive proposal size-wise, but nothing special design wise.

Yeah. Sometimes JCMan's blind JC boosterism blinds him from the facts.

investordude

October 8th, 2007, 09:00 PM

You're right the towers aren't as tall at TWC, but I think JCMan's post keep the discussion fun, lively, and informative. Also, they will make a more substantial difference in the metropolitan skyline than TWC does.

Hopefully, those coffee table books of "above new york" style photos will start including skyline changes in JC and Brooklyn as their skylines become more impressive. Then, you'll get national attention on markets like Journal Square and Brooklyn and a huge boost in investment.

JCMAN320

October 8th, 2007, 10:30 PM

Relax people dont jump down my throat, I don't mean you investor. My fault, it looks taller to me I guess because of the shorter buildings in the area. I wasn't trying to send a message, I don't care what size it is, it's something that needs to help the area i need of it that why I'm excited, ok so relax there buddy.

Also it's not blind boosterism, I call the BS card when I see it!

NYatKNIGHT

October 8th, 2007, 11:40 PM

Wait, I'm a little lost. You're discussing the Journal Square building, right? There was a comment that it's not as good design wise as TWC, but there is no rendering? What did I miss?

JCMAN320

October 8th, 2007, 11:47 PM

Here is the rendering, this is an early rendering, I expect to see it more refined.

http://s58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/?action=view&current=renderingofproject.jpg

JCMAN320

October 9th, 2007, 12:07 AM

77 Hudson is on fire....Paulus Hook evacuated.....wooden supports holding concrete top floor just finished in danger of collapsing.....crane in danger of collapasing.....started on 16th floor of West Tower and moved down to 14th.......I'll keep posted.

JCMAN320

October 9th, 2007, 12:13 AM

From wcbstv.com

Fire Rages Atop Jersey City Building
4-Alarm Blaze Burning Downward, Collapse Feared

JERSEY CITY (AP) ― Fire broke out Monday night near the top of a high-rise building under construction in Jersey City.

Dozens of firefighters are battling the blaze, which was reported shortly after 9 p.m. in an elevator well between the 17th and 18th floors at the 77 Hudson Street construction site.

There are no reports of injuries. Firefighters reportedly were having trouble accessing the fire.

Flames could be seen across the Hudson River in Manhattan.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

JC has the largest and only skyscraper firefighting unit in the state, but danger of collapse is keepin firefighters from accesing.

kenny285

October 9th, 2007, 12:21 AM

Firefighters are concentrating their efforts on the connections from the crane to the building, to prevent the crane from collapsing. That appears to be the priority at the moment.

JCMAN320

October 9th, 2007, 12:22 AM

Major fire on Jersey City waterfront

by The Jersey Journal Monday October 08, 2007, 10:29 PM

A major fire is lighting up the skies in Downtown Jersey City as the top floor of a building under construction at 77 Hudson St. burns.

The Jersey Journal's Michaelangelo Conte and photographer Reena Rose Sibayan are at the Greene and Sussex streets scene and will send in updates.

The project is the K. Hovnanian luxury condominiums that was in the news just weeks ago when it was learned that a record $6 million had been paid for a two-decker penthouse.

Channel 5 News is reporting that the Jersey City Fire Department has pulled all its people out of the building because the standpipe only goes up to the 15th floor and the fire is above that, on the 16th, 17th and 18th floors.

Falling debris, they said, also made it too dangerous for firefighters to be inside, so the 80 to 100 firefighters on the scene are fighting it from the outside.

The fire can be seen from Manhattan.

pics here:
http://www.nj.com/hudsoncountynow/index.ssf/2007/10/photos_major_fire_on_jersey_ci.html

JCMAN320

October 9th, 2007, 12:28 AM

Also light-rail service is suspended btwn Marin Blvd and Harborside Financial Center till further notice.

BrooklynRider

October 9th, 2007, 12:41 AM

Hope it is contained quickly.

citybooster

October 9th, 2007, 03:58 AM

Hopefully no one is injured in the 77 Hudson fire.....I hope they can save the project after determination of the cause,but for safety considerations,this project will obviously be delayed for awhile.It just makes no sense,as other major projects have been recently completed in the waterfront area without incident.I hope this is fully addressed and investigated,but I hope it will not result in a long cessation of building any more high rises.Jusdt seeingh the images of large blocks of the ELQ portion coming down,and the thought of those cranes collapsing and destroying lots more property and risking many injuries or fatalities....it's scary.

TimmyG

October 9th, 2007, 11:26 AM

I wonder if the fire was accidental, or if it could have been an arson.

macmini

October 9th, 2007, 12:34 PM

I wonder if the fire was accidental, or if it could have been an arson.

Tim stop reading Kannekt & hoboken411 Liberty Towers had a fire on the 23rd floor when it was under construction. Tolls Brothers North side Piers just had a fire because of some lazy ass construction worker accidents happen. I don't know why people are make such a big deal about this and the building is not collapsing as reported by the news. Yes, the floor constructed completely of wood collapsed a retard could have seen that coming.

ianmac47

October 9th, 2007, 12:45 PM

I do wonder though how much damage was actually done. The thing was still smoldering this morning apparently. A start time of around 9 would mean it was burning for 8 to 12 hours-- that can do a lot of damage.

My guess is that a cigarette lit trash, that then caught the wood. Or perhaps some hot piece of welding equipment.

lofter1

October 9th, 2007, 12:49 PM

Arson in Jersey?

Come on, now ...

vtshep1

October 9th, 2007, 03:42 PM

77 Hudson last night

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2329/1520983418_f25c5265d7_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2367/1520120535_ed078969cc_o.jpg

JCMAN320

October 9th, 2007, 03:48 PM

Fire director: Blaze 'not suspicious'

by Michaelangelo Conte Tuesday October 09, 2007, 1:23 PM

The spectacular blaze at the luxury condo high-rise under construction on the Jersey City waterfront is not considered suspicious, although its cause has not yet been determined, Fire Director Armando Roman told The Jersey Journal.

Firefighters are still at the 77 Hudson St. scene but should be finishing up soon, he said.

Construction workers, meanwhile, are starting to get the damaged upper floors in shape so the building of the planned 49-story tower can resume, Roman said. The crane that had been a cause of concern last night is at work again.

Sixty families from nearby buildings who were evacuated because of falling embers are expected to be allowed back into their homes around 7 this evening.

Check back with Hudson County Now for details throughout the day.

Click here to see The Jersey Journal's photo gallery from last night.

investordude

October 9th, 2007, 04:05 PM

I don't really think the fire is a big deal - a minor delay for the project.

But I do wonder why the standpipe never seems to be able to reach the fires lately. This is similar to the Deutche Bank fire. Developers should be held accountable if they don't take precautions that reduce the loss of life.

JCMAN320

October 9th, 2007, 05:00 PM

Well investor don't forget this building is under construction and the stand pipe had not be contructed that high yet and it of course will be throughout the whole building once it's complete.

giselehaslice

October 9th, 2007, 05:03 PM

Hmmm. Interesting.. It seems that there has been two fires at under-construction towers in New Jersey over the past couple of weeks. (ie water club at borgata in AC)

Anyway, this fire isnt that damaging, and i bet in about a week they'll restart construction on the tower. It will be okay, dont worry!:)

TimmyG

October 9th, 2007, 08:14 PM

That's good. I wasn't sure how a fire could start at 9:00 when no one would be around, but I didn't think of the slow burning cigarette factor. I don't think it should delay construction too long either, because most of the flammable stuff up there was the wood used during construction.

66nexus

October 9th, 2007, 09:38 PM

Not for nothing, but when News12NJ showed the fire with the surrounding buildings in JC from their helicopter, I kinda got a sense that this building is going to be more than a nice addition to the skyline(especially since it's between 35 Hudson and 101). I almost didn't recognize the city from that vantage point

JCMAN320

October 10th, 2007, 12:18 AM

Yes 66 it's going to fill a huge gap in our skyline and going to be a great addition.

Prominent Jersey City developer looking to conquer new worlds

by the Jersey Journal. Tuesday October 09, 2007, 2:28 PM

One of Hudson County's largest developers, the LeFrak Organization, was a pioneer on the Jersey City waterfront when it began building Newport more than 20 years ago.

Now, the family-run business empire is seeking new horizons , turning its attention to high-end markets in London and Los Angeles, according to this story in the New York Times.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/09/nyregion/09lefrak.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

JCMAN320

October 10th, 2007, 04:26 AM

'No one to save' so . safety first

Wednesday, October 10, 2007
By MICHAELANGELO CONTE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

The recent New York City highrise fire that claimed the lives of two firefighters was in the forefront of the minds of Jersey City fire officials who made the decision to pull firefighters out of Monday's night's four-alarm highrise blaze, officials said.

"Of course the Deutsche Bank fire was in my mind," said Jersey City Fire Chief William Sinnott, who was involved in the decision-making process leading to evacuation of firefighters battling the flames on the 17th and 18th floors at 70 Greene St.

"It wasn't going to happen," Sinnott said, referring to the deaths at the Aug. 18 Manhattan blaze.

When firefighters made it up to the 16th floor and began fighting the flames, they were confronted by intense heat in the building.

Firefighters were also told that some of the cement in the forms on the top floors was recently poured and "we were worried it may not have cured," Fire Director Armando Roman said yesterday.

That left fire officials worrying about a possible collapse based on fears the concrete might not have reached full strength, Roman said.

"There was no one to save, so we pulled out and we went vertical with aerial streams (from the ground)," Sinnott said.

During the retreat no water was being sprayed on the fire for a short time until all firefighters were accounted for through roll call over the radio.

Deputy Chief Michael Terpak, the incident commander, made the final decision to pull out the firefighters. Roman said Terpak "did a tremendous job."

TimmyG

October 11th, 2007, 10:08 AM

ARSON TO BLAME?
Top-floor blaze is being probed as 'suspicious'
Thursday, October 11, 2007 By MICHAELANGELO CONTE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER
Jersey City Fire Department arson investigators are calling Monday's raging high-rise fire suspicious.
"We have a renowned arson investigation unit and if there was in fact any wrongdoing by anyone, they will find it," Fire Director Armando Roman said yesterday of the Downtown blaze.
And while the investigation into the fire continues, it appears life is returning to normal around the scene of the fire.
The roughly 60 families evacuated from their homes on Greene Street Monday night were allowed to return to their residences Tuesday evening, Roman said, and officials were hopeful that Greene and Grand streets near the fire would be reopened last night.
The nearby offices of Merrill Lynch were able to reopen yesterday, Roman said.
Jersey City Building Department officials have given construction crews permission to work extended hours at the site to clean up debris on the ground near the building and to deal with the fire damage in order to resume construction, Roman said.
Firefighters responding to the four-alarm blaze at 8:40 p.m. Monday found the 17th and 18th floors engulfed in flames. The building is under construction and the cement forms on the top floors caught fire and burned brightly. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined but it is thought to have started on the top floor, Roman said.
Firefighters attempted to fight the flames from inside the building, but high heat and other factors forced them to withdraw and battle the flames from the ground. The fire was under control by 1 a.m. Tuesday and firefighters left the scene 2:34 p.m. that day, officials said.

JCMAN320

October 11th, 2007, 06:15 PM

The big clock by the river
Colgate Clock still an icon in Jersey City

Ricardo Kaulessar
Reporter staff writer 10/06/2007
http://images.zwire.com/local/Z/ZWIRE1291/zwire/images/2007/10/story/10colgate07a_hiqeri_story.jpg
COLGATE CLOCK – This is a photo of the Colgate Clock taken by Jersey City Police Officer David Sanchez that was digitally manipulated to give it a cartoon look.

These days, Jersey City is identified by every new high rise tower that springs up on its shores or further inland -the Goldman Sachs building at 30 Hudson Street, Trump Plaza, and other buildings.

And then there's Liberty State Park, Newport and other historic locations that spring to mind when one thinks of New Jersey's second largest city.

But there was a time when people looking across the Hudson River knew where Jersey City was when they had to find the time - the Colgate Clock.

The octagon-shaped clock, once located on the Colgate & Company factory building near the Jersey City waterfront, now sits on an empty lot; relocated several times after Colgate left New Jersey.

The clock sits about a couple hundred feet away from the Goldman Sachs Tower, and there have been discussions about eventually relocating the clock in order to utilize the land around it for development. Residents nearby would like to see the land developed into a park.

But for now, the 50-foot wide clock is fenced in at its base, but still visible for tourists sailing on Circle Line cruise ships (where it is pointed out that the clock is the one of the largest in the world) and for residents to still be impressed.

How the clock started ticking

The funny thing about the Colgate Clock is that this is actually the new version.

The current clock was built in 1924. It is considered the world's largest clock with a 50' diameter face, and a minute hand that is 25' long. The design was based on Colgate's Octagon Soap.

The current Colgate Clock replaced an earlier clock designed by Colgate engineer Warren Day, which was constructed by the Seth Thomas Clock Company for the centennial of the Colgate Company in 1906. That clock had a face measuring 37 1/2 feet in diameter and covering an area of 1,104 square feet. It was installed on the roof of one of the Colgate factory buildings along with its sign that was about 20 feet high.

In a 1988, a New York Times article on the Colgate Clock, noted that the sign was "illuminated by 1,607 bulbs outlining the letters, hands and hour marks, totaling 28,000 watts."

The original clock and sign still exist in Jeffersonville, Indiana, where Colgate maintains a functioning factory.

Reactions to the clock

Ian Macallen, a Jersey City resident who runs an Internet blog, offered this statement about the clock:

"Boston has the Citgo sign. Jersey City has the Colgate Clock. It's an icon, a monument to our history," Macallen said. "But it also embodies the present; the clock stares out over the Hudson River longing for Manhattan like much of the new, gentrified Jersey City."

Jersey City Police Officer David Sanchez photographed the Colgate Clock last year and is displaying a digitally manipulated version of that photo as part of an exhibit of his photos in the City Council Caucus Room in City Hall.

"That clock reminds me of old-time Jersey City, when the factories were still here, when I was growing up in downtown" Sanchez said.

Stephanie Daniels, who resides in the Paulus Hook section of the city, not far from the clock, remembers trips she would take with her daughter on the ferry to Manhattan, and seeing the clock during those trips.

"I love the clock," said Daniels, a 17-year resident. "For me, I like the mix of the old with the new. And it's a cool-looking structure."

Could the clock be moved again?

Daniels is also a member of the Historic Paulus Hook Association (HPNA) and is part of the association's "Connect the Parks" initiative, which looks to develop various lots and open space in the Paulus Hook area. That area includes the land on which the clock sits. The land is owned by the New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.

Daniels said she has heard talk about moving the clock to accommodate a new park but said she'd like it to stay in the location where it is currently placed.

Gerry Bakirtjy, president of the HPNA, said that he would like to see a new, permanent location for the clock on the Jersey City waterfront, as this clock could be moved again if a park was ever developed on the land.

"There were renderings done of the land as a park, to be called Veteran's Park because the land is owned by the Veterans Affairs," Bakirtjy said. "That does not include the clock since the clock was not on the land at the time of the renderings."

For comments on the story, contact Ricardo Kaulessar at rkaulessar@hudsonreporter.com

tbal

October 13th, 2007, 05:00 PM

At the Embankment Celebration this afternoon, when Mayor Healy stepped up to the podium, he emphasized that he has been fighting for the past 3 years to persuade legislators at local and state levels to help him get the ball rolling on the creation of a light rail extension from the Secaucus Junction rail terminal to Newport, passing through the Bergen Arches and along the Embankment.

The goal, he said, is to reduce traffic during the morning and evening rush hours along Jersey City's main roads by providing another (reliable) means of getting in and out of the city's business district. He mentioned that "you can't get in" or out of the city sometimes due to heavy congestion.

As much as I like the idea of mass transit (especially reliable rail transit), my question is - is there enough room for both the park and two sets of tracks up there? It seems like it would be a tight fit.

At the celebration, the entire conceptual plan for the Embankment park was laid out on a table - it looks really nice, and very creative. And we need green space.

Council member Mariano Vega also addressed the crowd, and mentioned that he would like to see a light rail line run at ground level along the road (6th Street) next to the Embankment so that more green space would be available.

What do you guys think? I'd personally rather see the Light Rail run on Sixth Street than on the actual Embankment.

z22

October 13th, 2007, 05:50 PM

I think the light rail should be on the actual Embankment. I mean, if the light rail does not need to cross streets, why not do it that way. It will allow more trains to go to and form Jersey City without crawling through the streets. The commute time from Secaucus Junction to Newport would be shorter and no impact to local motorists. Also if it is not necessary to be on the Embankment, then why spend time and money to flight developer using light rail as one of the reasons? We could have built the light rail line in any of the streets (5th, 6th, 7th, etc.).

It is true that it will be real tight, but it is wide enough for light rail line, Multi-Use Path (e.g. biking, jogging, etc.) and a lot of green areas for MUP users to coexist.

What if the proposal is to have the light rail down to the street level, what is going to be up there on the Embankment? You think we are going to spend big dollars to build bridges to connect the whole area together just for recreational usages? It is more economical to share the cost of building bridges for transportation and recreation reasons. Many more people will benefit if light rail line and MUP are together on the Embankment.

JCMAN320

October 13th, 2007, 08:43 PM

Guys that embankment once carried EIGHT rails of frieght to the Waterfront. Park and two slim light-rail lines can exist.

Malcontent

October 14th, 2007, 12:04 AM

Do you guys know where we can find some renderings of the Embankment park design?

ianmac47

October 14th, 2007, 01:56 PM

Personally I think the embankment should be removed, the space converted into a park, Sixth Street converted to a one way west bound street with a light rail line ala Essex Street (which has two way light rail service on a one way street divided by a curb).

Malcontent

October 14th, 2007, 02:43 PM

tbal

October 14th, 2007, 02:58 PM

Malcontent - here's all you ever wanted to see regarding the project - note that there are four (4) image galleries containing photos & renderings...
http://www.embankment.org/whitesite/photo.html

I also like the idea of an elevated park since the elevation removes you from the busy-ness of the urban atmosphere (you won't be able to see all the vehicular traffic passing by while walking along most parts of the Embankment park). It will be a place for some tranquility without having to go all the way to the suburbs (although putting the Light Rail up there would ruin some of this IMO).

btw - Manhattan's High Line park (under construction at the moment) is the only elevated park that I know of...

ianmac47

October 14th, 2007, 04:36 PM

I think the idea of having an elevated park on the embankment is very unique. I really have not seen any other parks elevated in such a way. I think raising the park would make it much more quite and pleasant for park goers.

A decade ago, it would have been a "unique" park. But besides the first such park, the Promenade Plantée in Paris, there is the High Line in New York as well as "the Bloomingdale Trail (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloomingdale_Line) in Chicago and on old Reading Viaduct (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reading_Viaduct) elevated rail in the Callowhill (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Callowhill%2C_Philadelphia%2C_Pennsylvania) section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philadelphia%2C_Pennsylvania). Freeway Park (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freeway_Park) in Seattle,_Washington (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seattle%2C_Washington) is in some ways comparable; it is elevated over a large freeway and parking lot." (cite Wiki article on Promenade Plantée)

TimmyG

October 16th, 2007, 10:31 AM

from the Jersey Journal
Symposium topic tomorrow: Newport transit
Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Several hundred people are expected to attend the Newport Waterfront Association's symposium on improving transportation in Newport in Jersey City and the surrounding area at 7 p.m. tomorrow.
The meeting will be held at the Newport Tower Cafeteria, 525 Washington Blvd., and representatives from PATH, NJ Transit, and the Jersey City Planning Division will give presentations, followed by a question and answer session.
NWA President Sonia Maldonado said that PATH presenters will address how to decrease crowding and long wait times for trains on late nights and weekends. Maldonado said she would like to see PATH add more trains during rush hour.
"Anybody who rides the PATH has a legitimate concern," she said, adding that the event is not just for Newport residents, but for commuters using the Journal Square and Grove Street stations as well.
Maldonado added that crowding on the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail will also be addressed.
Call (201) 963-8682 or e-mail events@NewportVoice.org to RSVP for the event.
KEENAN STEINER

TimmyG

October 16th, 2007, 10:34 AM

It will be interesting to see what they do with this. I agree that the Route 7 entrance is pretty ugly, but I don't really know what can be done there.

Upgrades for city's gateways
Tuesday, October 16, 2007 By KEN THORBOURNE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Sixteen "gateways" to Jersey City are in for a makeover.
Jersey City officials earlier this month announced a roughly half-million dollar beautification program to improve the appearance of these long-neglected entry points to the city.
The gateways range from the familiar and obvious, such as Communipaw Avenue coming off the just renamed Police Officers Shawn Carson and Robert Nguyen Memorial Bridge, to the less obvious and mostly forgotten, such as Route 7 where it runs into Newark Avenue at the beginning of Little India.
"It's such a disaster," said Jose Arango, director of city's Division of Economic Development, about the state of the city's various entry points. "Everyone has neglected it for several years. This is the biggest (beautification) project in the history of Jersey City."
The upgrades will consist of various arrangements of Belgian blocks, flowers, evergreen, flags and solar-powered lights, Arango said.
Roughly $520,000 has been set aside from state Urban Enterprise Zone funds for this effort, officials said.
UEZ zones are areas in the city where businesses are allowed to charge customers half of the state's 7 percent sales tax. Most of the 3.5 percent charged customers is returned to the city for projects such as these, Arango said.
This job will go out for bid by the end of the month and work should be completed by next spring, Arango said.

ianmac47

October 16th, 2007, 12:18 PM

What a waste of money-- not that I don't agree that these "gateways" need beautification-- but I much rather see the traffic patterns improved rather than just gussied up with flowers and Belgium blocks.

nafco

October 16th, 2007, 01:11 PM

off topic of this, whatever happened to 77 hudson? are they still investigating? is the crane going to remain? will they continue to rebuild?:confused:

nafco

October 16th, 2007, 01:34 PM

sidenote, local live maps have updated again and you can see some newer projects on the birds eye view that didnt exist last year. trump, 50 columbus, Athena, etc.

http://maps.live.com/#JnE9eXAuMDczMDYlN2Vzc3QuMCU3ZXBnLjEmYmI9NTguMzU1N jMwMzYyODA5NiU3ZS0zMi4zNDM3NSU3ZTE1LjUzODM3NTkyNjI 5MiU3ZS0xMzMuODU3NDIxODc1

JCMAN320

October 16th, 2007, 04:27 PM

I for one am happy about the beautification. Some of the entry's need it and I am also for a traffice study, which they have been doing.

77 Hudson is going to continue and the cranes are fine. They just had to sure the place up. The are now thinking it was arson. So there is an investigation but it will continue to build.

JCMAN320

October 16th, 2007, 05:27 PM

Symposium topic tomorrow: Newport transit

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Several hundred people are expected to attend the Newport Waterfront Association's symposium on improving transportation in Newport in Jersey City and the surrounding area at 7 p.m. tomorrow.

The meeting will be held at the Newport Tower Cafeteria, 525 Washington Blvd., and representatives from PATH, NJ Transit, and the Jersey City Planning Division will give presentations, followed by a question and answer session.

NWA President Sonia Maldonado said that PATH presenters will address how to decrease crowding and long wait times for trains on late nights and weekends. Maldonado said she would like to see PATH add more trains during rush hour.

"Anybody who rides the PATH has a legitimate concern," she said, adding that the event is not just for Newport residents, but for commuters using the Journal Square and Grove Street stations as well.

Maldonado added that crowding on the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail will also be addressed.

Call (201) 963-8682 or e-mail events@NewportVoice.org to RSVP for the event.

KEENAN STEINER

ianmac47

October 16th, 2007, 08:17 PM

I for one am happy about the beautification. Some of the entry's need it and I am also for a traffice study, which they have been doing.

I'm not saying some of those locations couldn't use a sprucing, like route 7 or the 1&9 bridge. Certainly route 7 gives off a pretty bad impression for anyone passing by. But especially with that route, the whole thing is about to be torn up anyway, so why waste the money now-- the Whittpen bridge needs to be replaced, Pulaski needs to be replaced, the whole Tonnelle circle needs to be replaced-- these are all imminent projects, which really are all one big project when you consider how tightly woven they are. My point I guess is, why not expedite these projects and include beautification rather than spend the money laying Belgium bricks that are going to torn up when these projects go ahead, mostly like within the next 3 to 5 years.

Edits:
NJDOT Whittpen Bridge Reconstruction:
http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/capital/stip0608/sec3/routes/rt7.pdf

Take a look at this alignment:
http://www.nj.gov/transportation/works/studies/rt7wittpenn/pdf/propalign.pdf

Any beautification improvements on route 7 will be completely wiped out once this gets going, which it already is if I understand correctly.

More Edits:
Also, in conjunction with the Whittpen is the St Pauls Viaduct improvements, which are basically two phases of the same project:
http://www.nj.gov/transportation/works/studies/rt1_9t/pdf/proposed.pdf

Radiohead

October 17th, 2007, 12:13 AM

I was in JC on Monday 10/15/07 and took a few shots around town. Click on the text link to enlarge (56K warning)

Panorama of JC, Hoboken and parts north
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2358/1591095275_df9e35ee77_o.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2358/1591095275_d4a8b8eb0b_b.jpg

Closeup pan of JC at dusk
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2038/1591980280_46ecf56b78_o.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2038/1591980280_9f65e386d8_b.jpg

Daytime pan of JC and Manhattan
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2110/1592167478_b0e204ff29_o.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2110/1592167478_0102980116_b.jpg

Some other shots
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2004/1592227324_3825f52f80_o.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2004/1592227324_38677b3f68.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2225/1591336097_45aafb177a_o.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2225/1591336097_f807a327c5.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2152/1591323061_45654f22a5_o.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2152/1591323061_47f15489d8.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2189/1591325173_bf6a5be1f7_o.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2189/1591325173_4385642d91.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2021/1591317337_518a2ca5f6_o.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2021/1591317337_df39d03d49.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2323/1591300515_aad094fca3_o.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2323/1591300515_b1d3bbeb0a.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2075/1591287647_1417ddb59f_o.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2075/1591287647_bc3d38838d.jpg

Radiohead

October 17th, 2007, 12:33 AM

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2106/1592175864_729c8f3797_o.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2106/1592175864_513571af91.jpg

Maybe JCMan, Macmini or others know what will be going up here.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2335/1592224924_d043380578_o.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2335/1592224924_cdac4ae18f.jpg

Here is the area around the Newport/Pavonia station. None of my night pics showed up decent; this is the best.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2404/1591979642_d94d0166c3_o.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2404/1591979642_9177f2d78c_b.jpg

JCMAN320

October 17th, 2007, 01:10 AM

Great pics Radio love the panorama. That site is teh site of the 2 Provsot St. where an artist loft will be built with a cabaret theater, gallery, and restaurant.

kljc

October 17th, 2007, 02:33 PM

That site is the site of the 2 Provost St. where an artist loft will be built with a cabaret theater, gallery, and restaurant.

That is the empty lot where 111 First used to be. KoolHaas building will be erected there one day.

Matzo factory on Provost could (nothing approved by or officially presented to the city) be the site you're typing about. Toll Bros. is still working on their plan for the area... Planning Board presentation last night was postponed until next month, apparently they're not ready.

ianmac47

October 17th, 2007, 03:32 PM

Has anyone heard anything about Morgan Point, a midsized project for Marin and Morgan street proposed a 1+ years ago-- I haven't heard anything much about it;

JCVibe has some photos of the renderings.
http://www.jerseycityvibe.com/index.php?option=com_mtree&task=viewlink&link_id=1095&Itemid=106

EDITS

Apparently I just answered my own question:

Case: P05-125/ Z03-026 Extension of Preliminary/Final Site Plan
Applicant: Fields Development Group
Attorney: James McCann
Address: 126-142 Morgan Street
Block: 140 Lots: A.1, B.1
Zone: Powerhouse Arts District Redevelopment Plan
Description: Original Approval was granted on June 14, 2004. A one year extension
was granted April 18, 2006, however, due to delays from NJDEP,
additional testing must be performed on site. An additional one year
extension is being requested to accommodate this delay.
http://www.cityofjerseycity.com/uploadedFiles/Public_Notices/Agenda/Planning_Board_Agenda/PB%20AGN%202007%2007%2010.pdf

kljc

October 17th, 2007, 05:19 PM

Has anyone heard anything about Morgan Point, a midsized project for Marin and Morgan street proposed a 1+ years ago-- I haven't heard anything much about it;

http://www.cityofjerseycity.com/uploadedFiles/Public_Notices/Agenda/Planning_Board_Agenda/PB%20AGN%202007%2007%2010.pdf

Field's brought in Toll Brothers to plan the area from Warren to Marin between Morgan and Bay. So far, Matzo factory is safe from the wrecking ball.

This too is now part of the Toll Brothers dream "superblock".

Check out Powerhouse Arts District Neighborhood Assn. web site,
http://www.padnajc.org

You can get the neighborhood's side of the project and the amendments that Toll Brothers would like to make to the PAD Redevelopment Plan.

Not sure the city will be able to grant all their wishes. The neighborhood wants to keep the density down and the height under control. 900 units in this space is a lot to absorb with all the surrounding hi-rises outside the PAD. I'm for the original plan, no more amendments needed... Toll should have known better than to mess with a very political neighborhood. Expect noise from the community on this proposal. They should find another neighborhood to build their massive buildings. This lot is surrounded by occupied mid to low rise warehouses, in the heart of the PAD.

ianmac47

October 17th, 2007, 09:36 PM

900 units in this space is a lot to absorb with all the surrounding hi-rises outside the PAD.

That's one way of looking at it. Another way of looking at is to recognize the proximity of the proposal to mass transit, and thus the reason why this area is an excellent place for high density housing.

While I can understand that people bought into the PAD thinking it would be one thing, and now its seems it will be another, that is one of the risks that comes with buying into an undeveloped area.

Further, the demand for housing continues to grow-- and will continue to grow as the region reduces available housing. New York's downzoning, sorry, "contextual" zoning of hundreds of blocks is only going to further burden Jersey City's housing market. The downtown has clearly been a repository of housing overflow. There will be little character left in the PAD the housing market is constricted. Manhattan's neighborhoods are grossly over priced not because there are too many housing units available, but because there are too few. One of the many arguments for downzoning neighborhoods in Manhattan has been to "preserve the character." But there is little character left when the only people who can afford a neighborhood are the super rich.

The only thing that will keep in check the cost of housing is the availability of housing. If the market is flooded with new rentals and condominiums, the relative cost of housing will remain stable, or at least not rise as quickly. This in turn means the "interesting" people and small businesses that provide neighborhood character are able to stay in the neighborhood. Restricting height and density artificially because some people don't want a building in their backyard simply means that the market forces that otherwise would balance out demand are unable to function. The same number of people still want to live in a certain area, but instead of the market ensuring enough available housing, artificial restrictions prevent supply catching demand, thus prices go up.

We can fight every new development proposal because no one wants a tower in their backyard, but doing so is simply throwing out the welcome mat for the uber rich.

citybooster

October 17th, 2007, 10:28 PM

Though I agree with Ianmac's take about the big picture,it should be made clear that the developers do not have all the say in the character of the neighborhood.....they must work with the neighborhood.They must not destroy everything the district stands for with its ill-thought out out of place,overpowering towers,cold plazas and limited open space,and severe restrictions of affordable units to 1%.they have a LOT of compromising to do....we also have the potential of Lier developing his properties,including the massive Butler Building complex and the proposed raising of the height allowable for a building he is likely to build from 250 to 350 feet.I'm not saying that the city shouldn't allow smart development which will ultimately benefit Jersey City,but it is always now the developers who call the tune and the city should look out for all its residents....the PAD association should press the city council on whether there is any real support for a more diversified plan which emphasizes art and culture in the PAD,or is the council for sale to every developer.

And I am a big supporter of having residential and office towers here...I want the city to grow and prosper.But I do think there should be careful consideration to having mixed low-medium density growth to counterbalance the high density developments.There is so much work to be done with our infrastructure it would behoove more restaint to high rise,congestive,infrastructure intensive megaprojects in our already zoned for less intensive developments like the Powerhouse district.We make a big mistake if we grow too fast too intensively without a consideration of scope and quality of life.

tbal

October 18th, 2007, 02:10 AM

I am in agreement with Ian on this one - he's right. It's a simple case of the supply-and-demand balance. The residents who live in the area around the PAD are probably just as concerned about their property values as they are about the sunlight being blocked from their front windows by the shadow of a tall building. And if I were living in the PAD, I'd want to keep the Toll buildings from being approved so that I would be able to get four times as much for my home as it was worth when I bought it - the people who live in the PAD realize they are sitting on a potential gold mine so long as the supply of housing in the area is limited - the area has undergone drastic gentrification and even people from Manhattan are seeing it as a better location from which to commute to Wall Street than Uptown Manhattan is.

But, this is a city. And the interest of the entire city should be put ahead of the interests of a few greedy (and potentially very lucky) homeowners. Greater tax revenue will be brought in, roads and public spaces will be better maintained, and the overall appearance of the area will be much improved as more high-density buildings are constructed.

So, basically, not only will Manhattan be a place where only the rich can afford to live, but Jersey City will be too. Just look at what happened to eastern Hoboken due to the limitations placed on building heights. Many people who could have bought something there a decade ago can't afford to buy something there now due to limitations in the supply of housing.

btw - Councilman Vega even admitted before the large crowd assembled at the Embankment celebration last Saturday that part of the reason he wanted to see a park constructed on the Embankment was because it would improve his property value.

One more thing - "Morgan Point" (or is it "Pointe"?) was proposed for the slither of land between Morgan and Steuben streets, on the same block as 154 Steuben (aka Ivy House). 126-142 Morgan was the lot that Fields began working on over a year ago, drove some pilings into the ground on, and left when Toll came in and struck a deal with them to incorporate the lot into a mega-development.

Radiohead

October 18th, 2007, 03:16 AM

I agree with Tbal. Even many high earning Wall Street executives don't want to pay the exorbitant Manhattan real estate rates. What does that say for the rest of us? I do not want to see JC follow suit.

Between escalating mortgage/rents and taxes, businesses (especially in the financial sector) will eventually be forced to move to other parts of the country because their workers will not be able to afford to live in the metropolitan area. Who wants to commute 2 hours each way? There are still some semi-affordable areas of JC that are not run-down. This should always be the case.

Build it high!!

citybooster

October 18th, 2007, 05:43 AM

Field's brought in Toll Brothers to plan the area from Warren to Marin between Morgan and Bay. So far, Matzo factory is safe from the wrecking ball.

This too is now part of the Toll Brothers dream "superblock".

Check out Powerhouse Arts District Neighborhood Assn. web site,
http://www.padnajc.org

You can get the neighborhood's side of the project and the amendments that Toll Brothers would like to make to the PAD Redevelopment Plan.

Not sure the city will be able to grant all their wishes. The neighborhood wants to keep the density down and the height under control. 900 units in this space is a lot to absorb with all the surrounding hi-rises outside the PAD. I'm for the original plan, no more amendments needed... Toll should have known better than to mess with a very political neighborhood. Expect noise from the community on this proposal. They should find another neighborhood to build their massive buildings. This lot is surrounded by occupied mid to low rise warehouses, in the heart of the PAD.i am aghast by the simplistic notion that the high prices of Manhattan are primarily the result of the housing stock limitations.Maybe to a point,but Manhattan remains prohibitively expensive due to incredible inflation in the price of land use,construction,advertising for luxury projeccts,etc.So we have to imitate it and reflexively build high so prices will come down due to a greater availability of units?We are minimally lower priced.Those people who live in the PAD,are attracted to the benefit of living in an exciting,diverse,unique,distinct cultural/artistic mecca with its own character.That is a great selling point in itself for Jersey City as a world class city.

I support the high rises dotting the downtown skyline as part of Jersey City's stake in being a modern,world class mid size city.But to gut the promise of the PAD for the greed of the developers....and they are the ones who call the shots,who never seem to hear a no...is misguided and ill-thought out at best and a betrayal of the city to what constitutes its heart and soul at worst.The only ones who benefit are the developers,the politicians,and the wealthy who couldn't give a damn about the rest
of the city.Wherever the developers set their sights,the middle,working class and poor are given pronises of a better future that are empty and meaningless.

It's about time someone stands up to the madness of runaway high rise infestation that constantly stresses the infrastructure ever so more.More traffic,more ugly parking garage bases that destroy neighborhood character.

There must be for a truly intelligent plan of development low/medium density height and space as well as intensive high rise towers.Diverse neighborhoods with distinct character of their own,like PAD.To face losing 140-150 Bay Street,the remaining Cooke factory,the entire Manischewitz complex with the historic cobblestone street behind it for imposing,cold,neighborhood killing towers that do nothing to promote wise balancing betweern large and small scale would be a shame.I love the Waldo Lofts with its perfect fit for the intent of the district...we need to see buildings of that scale like the Hudson,Harbor Lights,Morgan Pointe that really compliment and proudly represent how cosmopolitan,sophisticated and culturally dynamic we can be.It is sad that only the bottom line of the most powerful are what seems to matter anymore.Toll Brothers has been arrogant,secretive and unfriendly towards the needs of the district...it's about time some responsible people like the PADNA stand up to them and say "this far and NO farther"!Don't forget,Lier and his lustful desire to completely develop the Butler property into several massive towers is next....it is a pornographic prostitution how much of the heart and soul of our city our administration and city council seem poised to surrender to the gods of luxury,materialism and excess.

citybooster

October 18th, 2007, 05:55 AM

Finally,in the modifications to the PAD plan,so much affordable housing,artistic live-work space and open space is sacrificed,there seems no point to even have a working theory of an artistic district.This plan is COMPLETELY unacceptable.The developers will never lower price demands,so long as the wealthy can pay up.Property values will go up,property owners of modest means will be squeezed...and the many who have to rent will have to double up just to afford the crappy smaller apartments as the market drives the least expensive available stock to $1,700 studio closets.There has to be a real commitment to the middle and working class,or we will head for disaster.Build big yes,but not in displacing and destroying blooming neighborhoods that can stand as representative of our truly being a world class city.If there is no balance,we WILL become two cities,and the wealthy downtowners (and wherever else the developers extend their tentacles into) will not see themselves and will distance themselves from the ereal heart and soul population....which will cause a strain on resources that will further put the unseen half of Jersey City in distress.

ianmac47

October 18th, 2007, 10:40 AM

i am aghast by the simplistic notion that the high prices of Manhattan are primarily the result of the housing stock limitations.

There are other factors like a finite land supply. In addition, as commercial rents increase, that puts greater pressure to build commercial buildings instead of building residential buildings. Then of course there is the higher cost of construction-- permits, material requirements, wages, ect-- but these costs are not proportionally higher to the final selling price per square foot. Real estate buyers always have the ability to offer a price below the asking price. In many markets outside of New York, the credit collapse has meant there are a lot more housing units than buyers, so buyers offer less money and still come out on top. Try low balling an asking price in Manhattan and the seller will probably laugh in your face because five other people will waiting to offer a bid above the $1,200+ per square foot asking price. So yes, supply and demand is a critical component of the price of Manhattan real estate.

So we have to imitate it and reflexively build high so prices will come down due to a greater availability of units?

"A skyscraper is a machine that makes the land pay." That is, to offset the demand for finite land, a skyscraper decreases the cost per unit of acquiring that land. There is a reason midtown Manhattan is skyscrapers rather than McMansions on half acre lots.

We are minimally lower priced.Those people who live in the PAD,are attracted to the benefit of living in an exciting,diverse,unique,distinct cultural/artistic mecca with its own character.That is a great selling point in itself for Jersey City as a world class city.

Restricting new housing is only going to make a neighborhood less diverse, less unique, and less culturally significant. Why? Because demand is going to continue to increase, and the people who make neighborhoods interesting are rarely the investment bankers earning $500k a year.

there seems no point to even have a working theory of an artistic district.This plan is COMPLETELY unacceptable.

Yes, I agree. Subsidizing the housing for a select group of people reeks of communism.

The developers will never lower price demands,so long as the wealthy can pay up.

You are looking at this in the short term. Eventually whatever building is built will become older, the interiors will be dated, and more importantly, newer, shinier, sleeker buildings will be going up some place else. The relative price of older apartments will be lower to that of the new units-- unless of course new units are not built, in which case all existing apartments in a desirable neighborhood will simply be astronomical in price. Which is all the more reason to NOT constrict the supply of new housing.

Property values will go up,property owners of modest means will be squeezed...and the many who have to rent will have to double up just to afford the crappy smaller apartments as the market drives the least expensive available stock to $1,700 studio closets.

Actually, as it turns out, that is a myth. In reality, gentrification helps everyone:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-04-19-gentrification_x.htm

kljc

October 18th, 2007, 10:46 AM

While I can understand that people bought into the PAD thinking it would be one thing, and now its seems it will be another, that is one of the risks that comes with buying into an undeveloped area.

The downtown has clearly been a repository of housing overflow. There will be little character left in the PAD the housing market is constricted.
...
One of the many arguments for downzoning neighborhoods in Manhattan has been to "preserve the character." But there is little character left when the only people who can afford a neighborhood are the super rich.
...
We can fight every new development proposal because no one wants a tower in their backyard, but doing so is simply throwing out the welcome mat for the uber rich.

?? uber rich ?? super rich?? Character??
Where will the diversity of incomes and people congregate if only "rich" luxury apartments are constructed downtown to house only the rich? Where's the character in that?

All text book theories but do you ever take a stroll through the neighborhoods you theorize.

so many points to discuss...

I bought an apartment in the PAD to live, not flip to make a profit. I am one of those people with a BFA; I came to add "character" to the community, to participate, not jump on to the train to go Manhattan to eat and play in someone else's neighborhood. Manhattan is where I work, not where I live.

I live in a city. I'm not against hi-rises. But there has to be some thought put into this redevelopment. You can't just look at statistics and architecture on paper, you must see how that building absorbs itself into the block it will reside.

I walk the streets of this city; I stroll more than many because I walk my dog throughout downtown. All I see from these tall buildings is parking garages. The taller the building, the taller the parking garage. Take a look at the images posted above and every hi-rise has a massive base of parking garage. None of these developers in this area will spend the money to dig a bathtub to have their garages underground.

Toll plan like all the others, starts with a parking garage (on paper - eight stories). The existing buildings that surround the Toll construction are three to ten stories tall. That means all these residential buildings will be looking into 24 hour lit parking garages. A gated community above the parking garages.

Also-- The idea of the PAD is to create a transition zone from the hi-rises along the river to Washington St. and Columbus - to the low rise area west and south west of Marin Blvd.

I enjoy walking from one neighborhood to the next. The variety of styles, Hamilton Park, Van Vorst Park, Paulus Hook, Newport, Exchange place, Harimus Cove, and the PAD. The diversity makes downtown JC a decent pedestrian destination. Why kill the opportunity to preserve what still exists.

Nobody is going to come to this neighborhood to walk amongst the parking garages, the neighborhood will only be admired generically from afar, just to handle the scale. And downtown will be isolated from the rest of Jersey City.

ASchwarz

October 18th, 2007, 11:49 AM

I'm a big supporter of the Koolhaas and Toll Bros. plans. Jersey City should allow large towers along the waterfront, downtown and in Journal Square.

NJ is overwhelmingly low-rise sprawl. It's nice to have the Hudson waterfront move in the opposite direction. I can't wait for Koolhaas and the Toll Bros projects, the Journal Square towers, etc. What I would really like to see is more development in the more neglected parts of JC, though I think that's coming soon.

investordude

October 18th, 2007, 01:40 PM

Radiohead

October 18th, 2007, 02:13 PM

Radiohead

October 18th, 2007, 02:17 PM

I don't actually understand myself why JC doesn't insist on underground parking lots once you move far enough island (I get you can't put the garage under water). But in Jersey City's defense, some of the newer projects do a reasonable job at wrapping the parking lots in retail so that isn't not too bad of an experience.

I'd prefer underground parking as well. I can live with above ground garages as long as they don't look like parking garages (i.e. square, concrete masses). It just takes a little imagination from the designers.

citybooster

October 18th, 2007, 06:14 PM

I know a few people who don't want any more high rises on the JC waterfront, then others who want nothing but. I fall somewhere in the middle. I want highrises, but AFFORDABLE highrises, not all "luxury" condos geared for those with 7 figure bank accounts. Unfortunately, affordable low rise condo's may not be financially feasible to any developer, at least on the waterfront. But as redevelopment moves further inland (i.e near the Beacon, the boulevard, 440) it may in fact be more feasible.Well,I support the balanced position as well.Just believe the Powerhouse Artist District,which the city once proudly instituted,should retain as much of a delightful character all its own.I love the fact that Hudson Exchange is apparently getting prepped for construction,and look forward to the Monaco and San Remo and 77 Hudson,70-90 Columbus,Hopefully Metropolitan and eventually several others on the Metro Plaza lot(that appears the furthest off at present time),Koolhaus' building,and City Center Towers at Journal Square as vital developments for the future of Jersey City.But I love the low to medium rise setting of the Liberty Harbor development....it will be diverse in character and reflect well on downtown Jersey City as a living neighborhood...albeit only centered on luxury housing prices.

Hopefully as development goes inward away from the waterfront,that we can have responsible balance of alternatively affordable,at least relatively priced to be within the range of the city's middle class,in the areas you mention.there are benefits and drawbacks to redevelopment,gentrification,what have you..ianmac had a good point on that...but this part of the country has such an expensive housing stock that whatever the upside to property values increasing,if you have to pay 60-70% of your income to remain in your apartment or hold on to your house to pay property taxes,it isn't worth it.There has to be balance,or the middle class will be squeezed out(again,many people rent...and $1,500-$1,800 a month rents with the cost of living in this area is just getting harder to afford).We cater too much to the chiefs,but the Indians have to live adequately as well.$10-15 an hour jobs can't afford the cost of housing the 6 and 7 figure wealthy influx can.

investordude

October 18th, 2007, 06:29 PM

If you're actually worried about affordability and keeping the middle class, why doesn't New Jersey listen to what they have to say?

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,303159,00.html

In other words, the reason middle income people leave is that taxes are too high and they view meddlesome government as corrupt. A simple solution to this is to build as many luxury apartments as possible and use the tax receipts from these affluent people to lower the overall tax burden for everyone else. A virtuous cycle is then created that works better than having some government regulated equality scheme.

ianmac47

October 18th, 2007, 06:55 PM

I live in a city. I'm not against hi-rises.

Just as long as the high rises aren't in your backyard, right? There isn't a neighborhood in the downtown where there are not people opposed to high rises. Even in High Rise Newport, the Newpsies who bought in the Shore Club were saying the Aqua high rise was inappropriate because it blocked their views.

There certainly are a number of things that I agree with you on, but opponents of new development often seem to confuse "Density" with "Design." High density does not by necessity correlate with bad design, and likewise, low density does not mean good design. Further, the anti-development often takes an absolutist stance. To this point, I have a brief anecdote. One former mayor of West Windsor, New Jersey was discussing development in his town in a NYTimes artlce. West Windsor has been beset by an onslaught of sprawl over the last decade, like many central New Jersey towns. I'm paraphrasing now, but essentially he said that in retrospect, he regretted trying to fight several developments outright. Ultimately West Windsor lost its legal fights and the developer-- it may even have been Toll Brothers-- built another housing complex with several hundred houses sprawling across former farmland. In the future, the mayor planned on working with developers to reduce the total footprint of new developments, ensure they integrate well into the community, and generally were laid out more to the wishes of the town planners rather than the designers working for the developer, in essence hoping to minimize the impact rather than letting haphazard sub divisions litter farm fields. The point here is that instead of just arguing that Toll should go away-- which they won't-- the PAD, and indeed other neighborhood groups-- should be working to pursue better, smarter development.

Now back to what I was saying about design vs. density. Perhaps some of you are familiar with Avalon Chrystie Place. If you are not, Curbed has pictures here (http://www.curbed.com/archives/2005/02/23/branding_the_bowery_whole_foods_edition.php). This building is by all means "low density," relatively speaking. Yet, it is no less neighborhood ruining then 700 Grove Street is. This is not better design just because it conforms to the downzoning. Still not convinced? Just look at Jersey City's Avalon Cove, certainly a low rise, low density development, but I would argue Newport has a better street life than the stretch of Washington Blvd lined with a fence and shrubbery protecting the 4 story high apartments.

To be Pro-PAD seems to actually not be PRO anything. Instead, it comes across as ANTI-change, ANTI-development. Instead, perhaps everyone should be focusing their efforts on better design. Here are some ideas:

Preservation
The Manoshevitz East, Butler, and arguably Cooke buildings all have some value, I agree. But their greatest value is in their facades. Modern building preservation techniques should certainly allow these buildings to remain, even if that means a tower rising through the center of the building.

Restricted Parking
Jersey City's greatest asset, at least in the downtown, is mass transit access. While the car-less household count is well below Manhattan's, it is more than acceptable to expect people to live downtown without a car. The number of new parking spaces should be limited. This has a multifaceted result. One, fewer cars will be on the roads simply by design. Second, since many apartments in a high density building would come without cars, there would immediately be a two tier pricing system. That is, some apartments will cost less because they will not have parking. Third, less parking means less cars means more pedestrians, which is good because pedestrians help invigorate street life.

Invisible Parking Garages
I do agree that parking garages are like cancerous growths protruding from many of Jersey City's high rise buildings. The best example of this abuse perhaps is Harborside 4A, which is literally more parking garage than anything else. A less bad example I think is Columbus Tower, because there is at least street retail on the base on one side, but still Steuben Street will forever be scarred by the "back" of that building. But all parking garages are not created equal. In some instances, parking garages are entirely hidden behind real buildings, not just facades. I agree this should be mandatory for future developments in Jersey City.

360 Degree Buildings
Another important consideration should be a building that has no "back," a 360 degree building with a living facade on every street it faces. One failure is the Trump building's Washington Street facade. There is one door, a service door without any windows, on Washington Street. Everything else is limestone, solid limestone. This is a failure of design. I believe its Portland that has a similar requirement of new buildings; every facade must be a living facade with windows and doors, the total percentage of each street face that is allowed to be something other than a window or a door is small, like 10%. In either case, ensuring that every street facing wall is the "front" of the building breeds life into the street.

Set Backs
Some of the greatest skyscrapers in Manhattan were built during the setback years. Of course in part, many of Manhattan's skyscrapers went up when natural light was the best source of indoor lighting anyway, and the setbacks ensured property owners received their share of light. Indeed, setbacks are probably more important than any single restriction on volume, height, or density. There are of course different ways of defining how much of a setback there should be. I tend to think the most important setback is the first setback, and afterward allowing a tower to rise as determined by the developer. That is, have a minimum height for the first elevation, a maximum height for the first elevation, and then a minimum set back for a tower.

Indeed, I do think Toll is likely to propose a garish tower complex; but I also don't think a neighborhood association is going to win an absolute victory. Instead I think the anti-development crowd needs to concentrate their efforts on minimizing the impact-- not minimizing the height-- of the proposal. Focus on the design of the building, not the density.

ianmac47

October 18th, 2007, 06:58 PM

citybooster

October 18th, 2007, 09:03 PM

Very good clarifications,ianmac.I hope both sides can try to work together,because like it or not,like you said Toll Brothers is not going away.

srg1

October 21st, 2007, 07:15 PM

By the way, the Crescent Court construction by Matzel & Mumford at First/Second & Merseles is moving along swiftly. The warehouse is completely down and almost cleared out. They are now getting ready to drive pilings into the ground. Pile driving might start this week.

BrooklynRider

October 22nd, 2007, 12:11 AM

ianmac47

October 22nd, 2007, 02:03 PM

My Dear JC Friends-

Please buy digital cameras so I can know what buildings and construction you are talking about.

(Just a personal request. So much exciting stuff going on over there.)

Mucho Gracias-

What buildings are you looking for?

I have photos and stats on most of the Downtown's existing buildings here (http://www.newyorkssixth.com/directory/2006/08/art-and-architecture.html)

And most of th downtown's construction projects listed here (http://www.newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/labels/)

nafco

October 22nd, 2007, 02:41 PM

im also begining to post some projects every couple days on jcconstruction.blogspot.com

BrooklynRider

October 22nd, 2007, 03:01 PM

That works for me. Thanks.

investordude

October 22nd, 2007, 07:46 PM

This survey always exagerrates first quarter earnings of financial areas because it includes bonuses, but still - Jersey City had the ninth highest earnings in the US for the quarter ended March 2007. As always, the SF Bay Area had the most consistently high wages, Manhattan absolutely crushed ever other place in America. But Jersey City's ascendancy, along with the increased distance of Fairfield County with competitors like Boston and San Francisco shows that at least around bonus time, New York's satellites are increasingly where the wage growth is at nationally - especially Jersey City.

http://www.bls.gov/news.release/cewqtr.t01.htm

bobcarlyle

October 22nd, 2007, 08:57 PM

ianmac47

October 22nd, 2007, 09:00 PM

InsideScoop

October 22nd, 2007, 10:30 PM

Orphan Projects
So I was looking through some of the older projects in Jersey city that hadn't had much activity lately; I'm making a list with the general question as to whether anyone knows what is happening / why there is a delay. Links go to the most recent photos I have:

109 Columbus (http://www.newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/labels/109%20Columbus.html)
Nothing has happened here since May, according to a JCLister, permits expire in less than 3 weeks. Concrete has been poured.

380 Newark Ave (http://www.newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/labels/380%20Newark%20Avenue.html)
They tore down the old buildings in July; since then nothing.

Belfuse (http://www.newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/labels/Belfuse.html)
Its had tarps and PVC pipe on the site since May. Anything?

These were all small projects by small developers who don't have enough money to perform. Wait until next cycle.

(http://www.newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/labels/833%20Jersey%20Ave.html)833 Jersey Avenue (http://www.newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/labels/833%20Jersey%20Ave.html)
They cleared the rubble and trash out in the spring; nothing since March, weeds have over taken the site, again.

This whole area is on hold, as they JCRA is trying to undo all sorts of bad zoning put in place by former Councilman Maldonado and the Hamilton Park Neighborhood Association (what business they had meddling on 18th street, one cannot understand). The City is trying hard to do a redevelopment plan and then sole source this project to Lucarelli. Google "antonicello" "lucarelli" if you don't believe the scoop.

(http://www.newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/labels/Metropolis%20Towers.html)Metropolis Towers (http://www.newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/labels/Metropolis%20Towers.html)
No changes since March; according to people I know, there isn't enough parking for the existing towers, and I would have thought the parking garage at least would have started by now; this is a multi-phase project.

Metropolis developers (G&S) did not have the residential experience or the equity to do this huge project themselves. They have been quietly shopping for a development partner to take it over and keep their land equity in the deal, with no luck since their plan is for a condo, and the condo boom is more of a condo crawl, and the construction costs of their elaborate plan were very high on a $/sellable sf basis. Project on indefinite hold.

Monaco (http://www.newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/labels/Monaco.html)
Pilings are nailed suddenly one summer afternoon, then everything disappears. I know they went before the planning board for site revision, but that was months ago.

Monaco developers are unable to get the debt financing they needed for this project because of their complicated partnership structure and surprisingly high cost estimates. They performed a load test on their site to gauge construction costs and now it is on hold indefinitely.

JCMAN320

October 23rd, 2007, 03:19 PM

Wander Private message me where your address is, if you don't mind and are comfortable that it is, so I know where this development it can give you some better advice on what to do.

JCMAN320

October 23rd, 2007, 03:46 PM

Small business seminar today

by The Jersey Journal Tuesday October 23, 2007, 9:29 AM

PNC Bank, 26 Journal Square, Jersey City, will host a small business start-up and preparation seminar today from 5:30 to 9 p.m. with the New Jersey City University Small Business Development Center.

The seminar will go over business plans and loan applications. Registration is required. For more information, call (201) 200-2156 or e-mail hle2@njcu.edu.

JCMAN320

October 23rd, 2007, 03:48 PM

Residents near Hamilton Park want delay on OK for five-story building

Tuesday, October 23, 2007
By KEENAN STEINER
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

A square block of residents near Hamilton Park in Jersey City say they were blindsided by a zoning change, and now object to the design of a proposed five-story building because they think it doesn't fit into the neighborhood.

Residents, with the support of the Hamilton Park Neighborhood Association and Ward E Councilman Steve Fulop, plan to ask the planning board at a meeting tonight at 5:30 to delay approval of the project. The board meets in the City Council chambers in City Hall.

Wendy Tom of Pavonia Avenue and her neighbors on the square block of the proposed building, on Ninth Street between Erie Street and Manila Avenue, say the proposed multi-family building is too tall, takes up too much of its lot and will cause traffic problems.

Now an empty lot, the plan calls for a 60-foot building that covers 85 percent of its lot, which doesn't jive with the single-family homes around it, Tom said.

Tom and her neighbors wants the developer, 209 Ninth Street LLC, to meet with residents and hopefully make some changes.

Consultation hasn't happened because the project was initially approved without notifying the community, due to what Fulop says is a loophole in the law that needs to be closed.

Residents on the square block only found out about the building 10 days ago, when the planning board notified them that the developer wants to make changes to the project.

66nexus

October 23rd, 2007, 03:54 PM

ianmac47

October 23rd, 2007, 04:55 PM

Not to mention that the Park Hamilton (9 stories) tower is adjacent to the lot, and Hamilton Square, formerly the St Francis Hospital, is 12 stories, and less than 500 feet from the site. But if you listen to the NIMBY whiners, its totally out of place, out of character, and out of context.

InsideScoop

October 23rd, 2007, 06:44 PM

hah
60 feet sounds like a 6 story townhouse to me

what a joke the hamilton parkers are against EVERYTHING . . .

tbal

October 24th, 2007, 12:51 AM

Although construction on many buildings downtown has stopped dead in its tracks, construction began yesterday (Monday, 10/22) for the four-story Matzel & Mumford (a division of K. Hovnanian Enterprises) building on Merseles Street in downtown (near the Turnpike). The crew there spent most of yesterday and today hammering pilings into the ground. Here are a few photos:

http://s58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/?action=view&current=Benches017.jpg

http://s58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/?action=view&current=Benches016.jpg

btw - the developers of both 833 Jersey Ave and The View requested a 1-year extension for submission of preliminary site plans at tonight's Planning Board meeting. So, at least these two are officially on hold for at least a year. It should be interesting to see if the developer of 109 Columbus makes a similar motion...

investordude

October 24th, 2007, 10:42 PM

bobcarlyle, a lot of it is related to financial services on the river obviously. I don't have stats for jersey city, but if you look at Manhattan, the BLS indicates financial activities professionals made a whopping $10000 a week during the first quarter, which explains almost $1500 worth of their clubbing every other area.

Also, keep in mind these are jobs located in Jersey City that BLS is calculating. I think a rational speculation is that many of the people holding these jobs don't actually live in Jersey City, though that probably changes as more Jersey City condos get built.

But still, its great for the Jersey City office market, which is great for the Jersey City condo market - and I think it bodes well for a continued boom in Jersey City.

tbal

October 25th, 2007, 12:36 AM

...you can check them out at www.panepintoproperties.com (http://www.panepintoproperties.com) (click on "Residential" and then on "70-90 Columbus")....the design was tweaked somewhat (the most obvious thing to me was that new architectural element that they added above the PATH station entrance).

Looks like the current cylindrically-shaped PATH entrance at the corner of Marin & Columbus will indeed be staying.

JCMAN320

October 25th, 2007, 04:27 PM

Not bad re-rendering I like it.

New LGBT advocacy office opens tonight

by The Jersey Journal Thursday October 25, 2007, 1:56 PM

The new Pride Connections Center of New Jersey, which will house offices for local lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender advocacy groups, will open tonight in Jersey City with a ribbon-cutting expected to draw officials from throughout the state.

The Jones Street building will house offices for Hudson Diversity Action Council and Hudson Pride Connections and will bring under one roof various HIV services, political advocacy, planning for the annual Pride Festival, and other social services.

A ribbon-cutting will be held at 7 tonight at the new office, 32 Jones St., with leaders of both non-profilt organizations as well as Hudson County Executive Thomas DeGise, Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy, and other elected officials from across the state, according to a press release issued today.

JCMAN320

October 25th, 2007, 04:29 PM

Vote delayed on Hamilton Park building plan

by Keenan Steiner Thursday October 25, 2007, 2:53 PM

The Jersey City Planning Board has postponed a vote on a controversial five-story building proposed near Hamilton Park, as the developer agreed to discuss the project with residents first.

Residents on the property's square block say the planned six-unit building, at 209 Ninth St., would be too tall and would cause too much traffic, and they say were blind-sided because the city didn't notify them of the project when it was initially okayed in 2005. The planning board vote had been scheduled for this past Tuesday night.

The developer, Sham Agarwal, agreed to talk to residents at a Nov. 7 Hamilton Park Neighborhood Association meeting, Ward E Councilman Steve Fulop said.

The developer did not answer calls today seeking comment.

Fulop thinks Agarwal is going to make some adjustments to the building to make it fit into the neighborhood better.

The building would be 60 feet tall and take up 85 percent of its lot, while the homes around it are zoned to be no more than 40 feet high and take up 60 percent of their lots.

The city approved the developer's project in 2005, but residents only found out about it recently because he told the city he wanted to make minor changes.

Because the city amended the Grove Street Redevelopment Plan in 2005 -- instead of creating a new plan -- to approve Agarwal's proposal, the city did not have to notify residents, which is a loophole Fulop and residents say they want closed.

66nexus

October 25th, 2007, 04:53 PM

JCMAN320

October 28th, 2007, 04:21 AM

City exiting state health plan

Saturday, October 27, 2007

With the city's labor unions on board, the Jersey City City Council voted this week to pull the city's roughly 4,500 current and retired employees out of the state health pension plan, joining over 250 other governmental entities in making the move.

City officials said the switch to a "self-insured" plan, which will start in January, will save the city roughly $11 million the first year and about $4 million a year after that - without any drop-off in coverage.

The new arrangement, set up through a consultant hired by the city with Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield, the same provider used by the state, will have some improvements over the old plan, including more opportunities to see a doctor before getting sick, city officials said.

Under the Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield plan, there is a lifetime pay-out cap per individual of $1 million. The new plan resets the cap to zero, city officials said.

In 2006, the city paid the state $46 million in premiums, but filed claims for only $40 million, said Michaline Yurcik, supervising administrative analyst in the city's Office of Health Benefits.

At Monday's council caucus, Local 1066 Firefighters Union President Joseph Krajnik said he and the administration were initially on "different wavelengths" about pulling out of the state plan.

"But every question has been answered," Krajnik said.

KEN THORBOURNE

BrooklynRider

October 28th, 2007, 06:40 PM

No denying, Jersey City has arrived.

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd121/BrooklynRiderRob/EighthAve24thStreet200709160555.jpg

LeCom

October 28th, 2007, 11:30 PM

And I was waiting for that arrival ever since my own arrival to New York in 1999. However, I never imagined that arrival would take only five years or so.

66nexus

October 28th, 2007, 11:59 PM

No denying, Jersey City has arrived.

Still undeniable

JCMAN320

October 29th, 2007, 09:36 AM

Absolutely stunning!!! Just think that our skyline will continue to grow. Can't wait to see what it will look like in 10 years. Thank you again BKRider.

JCMAN320

October 29th, 2007, 10:29 AM

Support center makes an old house into its new home

Monday, October 29, 2007
By N. CLARK JUDD
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Guido Sanchez, executive director of Hudson Pride Connections, says it's important for the $800,000 Victorian that now houses his organization to feel like a home.

Inside his new office, you'll find Wonder Woman action figures and other comic-book collectibles.

"Wonder Woman is a fun character, especially in an environment like this," Sanchez said.

His organization does outreach and hosts programs like a youth group and an HIV support group for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Hudson County residents. This weekend, it welcomed neighborhood people to see its new home.

The Pride Connections Center, HPC's new home at 32 Jones St., opened last month but became fully operational in the past two weeks. The three-story, 19th-century building also houses Jersey City Lesbian & Gay Outreach, Inc., focused on educational programs, and Hudson Diversity Action Council, a political action and advocacy group.

"It's social, political, and educational, all under one roof," said Project Manager Nancy Caamano. "That's the best part."

Sanchez added it was important to have services accessible in Hudson County rather than expect people to go to New York City.

"It's silly to think that people should have to ride the train just to get somewhere they can feel safe," Sanchez said.

Douglas Brinson, a 17-year-old who attends the youth group at HPC, said Hudson County isn't a bad place to be gay - although there are still occasional problems.

"I get a name called once in a blue moon," Brinson said. "That's about it."

The youth group is a place for him to make friends and keep busy after school, he said.

investordude

October 29th, 2007, 03:16 PM

I've made this comment before but I'm surprised given all the new construction it still stands: as a general rule, it strikes me that the buildings in Jersey City are better architecturally but not as good on amenities than the outer borough high rises. That is, the buildings in the outer boroughs, if you actually live in them, have better amenities that are more on par with the genuine Manhattan high end.

I think a good proxy for this is indoor pools. The nicest buildings opening in downtown Brooklyn have them, and I think the Edge and 80 Met and one of the Rockrose buildings in LIC have them. Even Arris Lofts has great amenities. I realize Beacon and the Newport complex have gyms with indoor pools, but that's just not the same as taking an elevator ride and seems more akin to a standalone commercial gym.

Any comments: aside from the gratuitous smack talk about JC vs the boroughs? I'm trying to figure out the market dynamic - less interesting buildings on the outside but better on the inside seems to be a general theme between the boroughs and JC and I'm wondering if there is an economic reason for this that Jersey City could address through zoning.

JCMAN320

October 29th, 2007, 04:51 PM

Well from what I understand Investor 77 Hudson, 50 Columbus, and Grove Pointe all have what your describing in the outer boroughs. I cant really comment any futher than that cus I really don't know much about what all the buildings offer.

Ground will be broken for new apartment complex in McGinley Square

by The Jersey Journal Monday October 29, 2007, 9:46 AM

A ground-breaking will be held today for a new residential complex planned for the site of the old Jersey City Municipal Court, at Montgomery Street and Bergen Avenue.

The ground-breaking, at 11 a.m. at 769 Montgomery St., is for the Court Imperial, a 38-unit complex that will feature loft apartments and two commercial units.

londonlawyer

October 29th, 2007, 06:33 PM

What's the status of the Metropolitan? That's a great building.

lofter1

October 29th, 2007, 07:42 PM

MrWolf

October 29th, 2007, 09:44 PM

I think that the next wave of new buildings in JC will exhibit more of the high-end "luxury" amentities being discussed. I believe The Beacon, Trump, Montgomery Green, Shore Club, (just to mention a few) and later down the road, 77 Hudson, etc., all seem to have very nice amenity offerings for their current/future residents. I currently live at the Beacon and have been pleased with the extent of the amenities at the complex (i.e. Valet, concierge, fitness, grotto, sauna, etc., etc. etc.). I also have heard that the complex will be incorporating some spa like services in the building, similar to Trump (which I believe will have a full spa within the complex). The uptick in recent amenity offerrings in JC, vis-a-vis the past, may have more to do with price point than anything. Jersey City is becoming a more expensive place to live and developers are focusing on providing more and more amenities to lure buyers. If you're going to sell condos in JC for bigger dollars, you will need to pony up on the amenities to compete. Trump and 77 Hudson are selling some 2 bd units for $1M ++++, so they have no choice but too make their developments as luxurious as possible.

JCMAN320

October 29th, 2007, 11:36 PM

Behind lens, a 'Dangerous' job for Jersey City official

by Ken Thorbourne Monday October 29, 2007, 8:14 PM

Most days, Greg Corrado is Jersey City's buttoned-down assistant business administrator.
But today Corrado was tieless and in short pants, engaging in his second professional passion: independent filmmaking.

The New York University Film School graduate was at the Jersey City Medical Center shooting a scene for "A Dangerous Place," a film he wrote and is directing. It stars Kristen Dalton, who portrayed "Gwen," Jack Nicholson's main squeeze, in "The Departed."

Due out next year, Corrado described the movie as "Enron meets anthrax" at a New Jersey pharmaceutical company.

Dalton plays a vice president at the company who takes on the evildoers, but not without handicaps. Her husband had died a few months earlier in 9/11. She and her son aren't speaking -- and as if that weren't enough, she's developed tuberculosis.

All of which made Dalton more willing to tackle the role.

"It was like I couldn't put it down," Dalton, a temporary resident of Paulus Hook, said about reading the script. "This woman is just up against so much."

By Hollywood standards, Corrado, who plans to return to his day job next week, is making the movie on a shoe-string budget -- less than $300,000.

Now for the real trick: Holding the line on property taxes.

billc

October 30th, 2007, 11:11 AM

The real deal on NYC / NJ condo indoor pools.

I previously lived at the Galaxy Towers in Guttenberg which has both an outdoor and indoor pool. The indoor pool was great, not only could you use it in the off season, which around here is most of the year, but it also would limit your sun exposure in the Summer if that was a concern.

How often are they out of service for maintenance / whatever reasons?

The pool there was over 30 years old and was unavailable for service only 4 weeks out of the 5 years I was there. Other then regular maint. the only lengthy service was repainting the pool and replacing tiles.

Do people use them? People do use them but during the Summer the outdoor pool got more use and during the rest of the year the most use was on the weekends as you might expect.

Are they disgusting or fantastic? I thought it was fantastic, and now that I live at The Beacon, which has an indoor pool, I'm expecting to contine swimming right through the Winter, which I think is great.

Front_Porch

October 30th, 2007, 05:28 PM

I can't speak to JC versus the outer boros, but it's worth noting that many of the Manhattan new development pools are basically lap pools, so even if they're 40 or 60 feet long, four people can't really swim at the same time because they're not wide enough.

So unless you're the only swimmer in the building, a new development pool is going to feel very different from the wide, multi-lane pools at older buildings like London Terrace -- which is not only long (75 feet) but wide (35 feet).

For comparison note that a true outdoor Olympic pool is 50 meters -- 160 feet -- long and 25-meters -- eight lanes -- wide.

I feel like buying a new building for the "lap pool" is kinda like buying into Downtown by Starck for its one-lane "bowling alley."

ali r.
{downtown broker}

injcsince81

October 30th, 2007, 09:51 PM

What is the real deal on NYC / NJ condo indoor pools?

How often are they out of service for maintenance / whatever reasons?

Do they live up to the hype?

Do people use them?

Are they disgusting or fantastic?

I can only talk about the pools at Port Liberte (cuz that's where I live now).

The infinity pool at the Point is round, pretty shallow, has jacuzzi jets, and its location is amazing. Guests of residents are snapping pictures in it, because the Statue and the NYC skyline are right there, separated from the swimmers only by water. Lounging around it in summer makes you feel like the outrageous maintenance charges at Port Lib are really worth it.

The other pool is deeper and a bit bigger. It borders the golf course, and also has skyline view.

Neither pool is crowded even on hot summer weekends if you get there 1.5-1 hours before closing.

I think both are around 20 meters long.

Edit - both are outdoor - I missed that part of lofter's query.

investordude

October 30th, 2007, 10:15 PM

I agree indoor pools may not really be all that - it's just their presence indicates the developer is trying to really jazz up the building for high end sales (even if they mismanage the pool later). Perhaps another example, at least when compared to downtown Brooklyn, is the tendence of newer projects not to have above ground parking in Brooklyn as compared to some Jersey City projects.

The odd thing is the reverse is true for Jersey on hotels. The entire Jersey gold coast and especially Jersey City has fairly nice business class hotels that are accessible via Path and are an alternative to Manhattan, whereas a lot of the downtown Brooklyn projects except the Marriott seem substantially down market (they're still an alternative to Manhattan, but probably for young people and hostellers rather than investment bankers looking for overflow rooms).

So, on the one hand, it seems Jersey zoning might encourage nicer hotels along the waterfront, but slightly less nice condos. Either that or its a coincidence, which is also possible I guess.

JCMAN320

October 31st, 2007, 12:57 AM

Affordable housing development on the way at King Drive in Jersey City

by The Jersey Journal Tuesday October 30, 2007, 9:38 AM

Jersey City and state officials will hold a ground-breaking today for the Harriet Tubman Houses, eight townhouses at Bostwick Avenue and Martin Luther King Drive.

The development is the first to be built in Jersey City under the New Jersey Housing & Mortgage Finance Agency's "CHOICE" affordable housing program.

JCMAN320

October 31st, 2007, 01:02 AM

38 condos for old court site

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy and others attended the groundbreaking for "Court Imperial" at 759 Montgomery St. yesterday.

The old Jersey City Municipal Court building, where Healy spent six years as chief judge, is being converted into 38 condominium lofts with two commercial units on the ground floor.

Earlier this year, Pine Brook-based Imperial Construction Group received a 20-year abatement, paying the city 16 percent of gross annual revenue to build the project.

The development is scheduled to be completed late next year.

KEN THORBOURNE

investordude

October 31st, 2007, 01:57 AM

You can make a (flawed) argument for affordable housing in New York because its so expensive, but with Jersey City, doesn't this just steal market rate customers from nearby Newark. If you can't afford an apartment in Newark, then a better use of government funding would be to give these people some remedial education and training but insist they build a more lucrative set of skills. The truth is, Jersey City is on the rise, and jobs that don't pay enough to live there are going to disappear and move to the south or overseas. So all this housing will do is trap people in a place where there are no jobs for their limited skill set, and deprive Newark of residents that it needs to rebuild neighborhoods.

TimmyG

October 31st, 2007, 10:08 AM

Home Depot to open near tunnel
Wednesday, October 31, 2007 By KEN THORBOURNE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Two years ago, a Jersey City Planning Board member said building a Home Depot at the foot of the Holland Tunnel defied "common sense."
If that's so, "common sense" takes a tumble tomorrow with the opening of a 102,000-square-foot Home Depot at Marin Boulevard and 12th Street - three blocks from the Holland Tunnel.
"At this point, I'm feeling really good," said Michael Ryan, chairman of the Jersey City Planning Board, about the city's newest do-it-yourself helper. "It looks nice. They are doing a real nice job and they are way ahead of schedule."
Things haven't always been this cozy between city officials and the giant retailer, which already has outlets on Route 440 in Jersey City, in Secaucus and in North Bergen.
Back in 2005, the company appealed to the Superior Court of Hudson County after the Planning Board gave the 3.3-acre project a thumbs-down on the grounds it would cause more traffic backups and clog local streets.
In February 2006, a state Superior Court judge ordered the Planning Board to hear the proposal again, saying its ruling took into consideration traffic considerations not included in the city's own Holland Tunnel Redevelopment Plan.
Plus the city's traffic engineers signed off on the plan, as well as engineers with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. With that, the $20 million development, featuring two levels of parking for 600 cars, was back on track.
Visitors to the store are in for a cross between a "traditional" and "Manhattan-styled" Home Depot, said manager Tim Ansbach.
A 16,000-square-foot mezzanine is to be devoted to kitchen, bath and floor displays, while the 86,000-square-foot ground floor is saved for bread-and-butter hardware items, Ansbach explained.
The store has 170 employees - more than 70 percent of them from Hudson County - and $7 million worth of product, said Ansbach.
Monday through Saturday, store hours are 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sundays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., employees said.
Given the limitations of Home Depot outlets in Manhattan, Ansbach said he's counting on plenty of visitors from the Big Apple. "There's no cash and carry in Manhattan," he said. "If you want a few sheets of Sheetrock right away, you'll have to come here."
In the Home Depot tradition, opening ceremonies tomorrow at 5 p.m. will feature a top city official chainsawing through a wood-carved Home Depot sign autographed by the employees.

investordude

October 31st, 2007, 12:21 PM

Possibly a big new tenant for JC. http://www.nypost.com/seven/10312007/business/colgates_nyc_brush_off_.htm

Malcontent

October 31st, 2007, 02:00 PM

It would be great if Colgate would build a large tower right on the waterfront in JC!

ianmac47

October 31st, 2007, 03:00 PM

I think its probably more likely that Colgate would become a major anchor for one of the Harborside towers already planned-- maybe HS 4. Most of those towers won't be built on spec alone and will want concrete leases for large percentages of their buildings before breaking ground. Colgate would be good though for other reasons-- specifically diversifying Jersey City's economy which I think is rather finance heavy.

JCMAN320

October 31st, 2007, 04:45 PM

Sweet Colgate is coming home. Colgate originated in Jersey City. Where Goldman Sachs, 101 Hudson, 70 & 90 Hudson, and 77 Hudson are built is where Golgate started their headquarters back in early 20th century. Hence where the Golgate clock comes from, so Colgate is coming home. Sweet!!!

citybooster

October 31st, 2007, 06:32 PM

Great news about Colgate if true,but let's hold off on the welcome home wishes until we are sure it is a done deal and not successfully used as a ploy to get additional help from the New York City government.Look at Merrill Lynch....doesn't look like we are even going to get the backup and support secondary office tower as they will either stay Downtown Manhattan or make a big move to the midtown development area centering on the Post Office/Moynihan-Penn Station -new Madison Square Garden development.Merrill Lynch,which was supposed to build a tower at 99 Hudson before 9-11 and the stock market bubble burst now has the rights development of that property until 2012,and clearly seems to be saying Jersey City is no longer a major consideration in our future.Perhaps they should do what Hartz Mountain had the good sense to do when they decided that it wasn't possible for them to commercially develop what is now 77 Hudson.Sell to developers like Hovnanian/ELQ who got projects running in a very short amount of time.(And Goldman Sachs should do the same with 55 Hudson unless they plan to build something like a conference/center hotel there.Parking lots must become more productive ratables.Build or move on and sell to people who will develop the potential of such valuable prperty,whether residential,commercial or mixed.

Still,this move by Colgate IF it happens will probably like Ianmac said lead to the announcement of the development of Harborside 4,as the possibility of 300,000 square feet being occupied by Colgate is pretty close to the minimum leasing projection required by Mack Cali to commence development.Hopefully the design has been tweaked and will be first class all the way.And it's about time we didn't put alll our commercial development eggs in the finance industry basket,and make Jersey City a viable option for a diversity of business concerns...next step,look away from just NYC based firms and look to attract New Jersey,national,and international firms of diverse business backgrounds,if we really want to get to restart that economic engine Jesrey City that has so much promise.

tbal

November 1st, 2007, 02:41 AM

Well, keep in mind that (according to the NY Post and a few other publications) Merrill Lynch is ditching downtown Manhattan for a Vornado-built office tower to be built in place of the Hotel Penn. Several months ago, it was stated that if Merrill were to choose the Vornado tower, it would likely have to acquire space in Jersey City or some other metro location as well. So, from what I can gather, we may definitely see solid anchor tenants sign with Mack-Cali to make way for construction of Harborside 4 to begin.

ianmac47

November 1st, 2007, 10:34 AM

I'm actually really surprised Jersey City hasn't picked up more of the other quintessential New York Industries.

Book and media publishing is almost exclusively a New York based industry -- that is, with the exception of university presses, very few publishing houses have offices outside of New York. Yet, its an industry that is not as lucrative as something like finance, and thus it should be more difficult to pay premium rents in midtown. I would have thought by now more publishers would have moved some of their offices out to Jersey City waterfront since they could cut 30-40% off their rents, and still have subway access to the city.

londonlawyer

November 1st, 2007, 11:09 AM

Does anyone know if the Metropolitan is u/c? Has its site been cleared? What's its exact address? I'd like to look it up on google.

JCMAN320

November 1st, 2007, 04:32 PM

Metropolitan seems to be on hold due to the credit crunch and all that jazz. It will evenutally get built.

JCMAN320

November 1st, 2007, 04:53 PM

'ArtRageous' beneift in Jersey City tonight

by The Jersey Journal Thursday November 01, 2007, 9:38 AM

The Jersey City Museum tonight hosts its annual ArtRageous Ball to raise money for the museum.

The event, from 6 to 10 p.m., features luminaries from the business, political and art worlds getting together to beneift one of the city's premiere cultural institutions.

http://www.jerseycitymuseum.org/artball/artrageousball.html

------------------------------------------------------------

Anyone interested in attending should check it out. Went last year alot of fun and great museum to visit. Very impressive for a young museum in terms of it finally getting its own building.

JCMAN320

November 1st, 2007, 10:54 PM

New home for Jersey City motorcycle squad

by Paul Koepp Thursday November 01, 2007, 3:30 PM

The Jersey City Police Department Motorcycle Squad has a new home.

The squad has moved out of its four trailers at the Public Works Department on Route 440 and into what were two empty floors in the Criterion building of the old Jersey City Medical Center, on Cornelison Avenue.

Mayor Jerramiah Healy will cut the ribbon for the new headquarters at 10 a.m. tomorrow.

Capt. Joseph Serylo, commander of the department's Special Operations Bureau, which includes the 26-officer motorcycle unit, said the 12,260-square-foot space is a "vast improvement" over sharing the Public Works facility with the Emergency Services Unit.

The squad parks its 25 Harley-Davidsons on the ground floor, with offices and a locker room on the floor above. Seven or eight cops are stationed there each day.

"They're very happy to be here," Serylo said. "It's new and clean, and there's much more room to work."

Developer George Filopoulos, president of Manhattan-based Metrovest Equities and owner of the neighboring Beacon condo complex, spent $1.4 million to renovate the space. He is leasing it to the city for $1 a year for 10 years, according to Metrovest attorney Eugene Paolino.

investordude

November 1st, 2007, 11:40 PM

They should make the Metropolitan a commercial building if the credit crunch is what's holding it up. If you can build hotels in Gowanus and Sunset Park, surely we can get a big one in Jersey City - and a nice attractive one not built to look like a McSam.

nafco

November 2nd, 2007, 10:37 AM

I dont think the floor plan which seems pretty narrow from the renderings, would be appropriate for a commercial building which typically require a large floor plate. However, once the current rental and condo units fill up in the area, it will probably profitable to build the metropolitan.

tbal

November 3rd, 2007, 02:56 AM

So, it appears that the developer wants to cut down on materials requirements by cutting down the height of the building while at the same time increasing the price per square foot for the units by increasing the number of units without increasing the total floor area of the building...(item #8 on the November 8, 2007 Zoning Board Agenda):

Case: Z06-067.1 Site Plan Amendment
Applicant: 361 Newark Avenue, LLC
Attorney: Charles J. Harrington, III, Esq.
Address: 361 Newark Avenue
Block: 446 Lot: 21
Zone: NC Neighborhood Commercial District
For: Amendment to Final Site Plan (originally approved May 19, 2005 and then amended December 14, 2006) to increase the number of units from 55 to 77, increase the number of parking spaces from 55 to 77, decrease the building height from 152 ft to 146 ft by reducing the floor to floor heights, and make changes façade and interior configuration.

I wonder how soon construction will resume after this modification is approved...(?)

JCMAN320

November 4th, 2007, 04:38 PM

Hey everybody, keep an eye out for the new Ford Focus commercial. I just saw; it is filmed in Liberty State Park with the Jersey City skyline given great camera time and is shown prominently. It has two guys arguing over music for voice command MP3s. Just thought I'd give everyone the heads up.:)

JCMAN320

November 5th, 2007, 11:50 AM

Program to encourage students in science, math

by The Jersey Journal
Monday November 05, 2007, 9:35 AM

Jersey City's Liberty Science Center will play host tomorrow to a symposium aimed at getting students more interested in science and math.

The program, hosted by the science center, Educational Testing Service and Prudential Financial, Inc., will feature, among others, Assistant United States Secretary of Education Lauren M. Maddox and state Commissioner of Education Lucille Davy.

The program begins at 11:30 a.m. at the science center, 222 Jersey City Blvd.

JCMAN320

November 5th, 2007, 11:54 AM

ST. JOHN'S CHURCH
A 'neglected' landmark?

Monday, November 05, 2007
By PAUL KOEPP
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Activists looking to preserve St. John's Episcopal Church have the support of the Jersey City Historic Preservation Commission, which voted unanimously last week to recommend placing the Bergen Hill church on the city's historic places registry.

An application by the Jersey City Landmarks Conservancy to have the church listed as a landmark will now go before the Planning Board on Nov. 20 and, if approved, would then be considered by the City Council. If St. John's is placed on the registry, the Episcopal Diocese of Newark could not demolish or alter the church without the approval of the HPC.

JCLC President Joshua Parkhurst said the diocese has neglected the building, allowing it to fall into disrepair as it sat vacant in recent years, and finally bringing in a Manhattan salvage firm, Old Good Things, in 2006 to remove church ornaments.

"Why the diocese would contract with such an organization is absolutely beyond me," Parkhurst said. "If my house was robbed, I would generally call the police and say I want my stuff back."

He said he doubts the claims of restoration experts who spoke on behalf of the diocese at the HPC's Oct. 29 meeting and said it would cost $25 million to renovate the church.

Efforts by the JCLC to find out the diocese's plans for the church have gone nowhere, Parkhurst said.

"We're willing to talk any day, any time," Parkhurst said. "We don't understand why the diocese is running away from this."

Bishop Mark Beckwith did not respond to requests for comment Thursday and Friday, and diocese Administrator Michael Francaviglia did not return phone calls Friday.

BrooklynRider

November 6th, 2007, 12:17 AM

JCMan you must invest in a digi camera. Maybe we'll set up a fund here for you. I don't know JC, so these posts are all mysterious. If it's not rising on the skyline - I know nothing.:cool:

Radiohead

November 6th, 2007, 01:29 AM

Here's an image of St Johns.

I'd be willing to throw in a few bucks for the JCMan camera crusade.

http://www.hudsoncity.net/temporary/imagestheater/StJohn-Episcopal-150.jpg

66nexus

November 6th, 2007, 12:49 PM

^I can't begin to imagine why anyone would want to get rid of something so obviously historic. I mean...once it's gone-it's gone...forever.

JCMAN320

November 6th, 2007, 01:36 PM

Lol thx guys. I have one I just always have difficulty uploading them because my computer is a dinosaur.

macmini

November 7th, 2007, 12:12 PM

I passed 70-90 Columbus last week, but I was in a car so I didn't get a real good look but it look like they have started some work on the foundation. Also found a great photo on flickr taken by hammernet you can see progress on the condo side of 77 Hudson.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2379/1880506907_a9d5148197_b.jpg

investordude

November 7th, 2007, 02:33 PM

http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-8/119441867195980.xml&coll=1&thispage=1

I don't like to post full text articles because it deprives the papers of revenue - you may have to register your zipcode to view the text of this but its free.

Anyways, I favor the taller buildings over the history - the historic buildings over there are blighted and there are better historic buildings in Jersey City more deserving of preservation.

sfenn1117

November 7th, 2007, 03:36 PM

Is that a recent picture of 77 Hudson? Have they taken the burned floors down and resumed construction?

macmini

November 7th, 2007, 05:54 PM

Developer set to sell condos to N.Y.'ers

Wednesday, November 07, 2007
By PAUL KOEPP
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

The developer of a waterfront highrise in Jersey City is looking to pull homebuyers from New York.

K. Hovnanian Homes has announced it has received its registration from the New York State Attorney General's Office allowing New York real estate brokers to sell condos at 77 Hudson St.

About 80 of the 420 units in the 49-floor building have been sold in New Jersey since they were made available to certain buyers in July and then to the general public in September, according to Tom Graham, senior community manager for K. Hovnanian.

But he said that with the new registration, the developer can now tap the huge potential of the New York City market, especially "the Manhattan buyers who presently think Brooklyn and Long Island City are their only options."

"We're showing them another choice in Jersey City and what we think is a better choice," Graham said.

K. Hovnanian is also offering brokers half of their commission immediately upon the closing of a sale, instead of the usual two-year wait, he said.

Prices range from $500,000 to more than $2.75 million for condos in the building, which is located on the south side of York Street between Hudson and Greene streets, one block from the Hudson River.

Graham said construction is ahead of schedule, despite a recent fire in the attached 70 Greene St. building, which is being developed by Chicago-based Equity Residential. The first residents should move in by spring 2009, he said.

Is that a recent picture of 77 Hudson? Have they taken the burned floors down and resumed construction?Yes it's a recent pic, they have taken off the top two floors but I'm not sure if their going to remove any more.

tbal

November 8th, 2007, 02:46 AM

macmini

November 8th, 2007, 10:51 AM

Looks like the folks over at globest.com got their facts mixed up in an article posted November 6th, stating, "Work is set to start for the Schroeder Lofts, a 58-unit condominium project at the corner of Erie and 10th streets here".

(Link to article): http://www.globest.com/news/1030_1030/newjersey/165763-1.html

Of course, work on Shroeder Lofts started a few years ago, and the building is already (at least) partially occupied. Photos from newyorkssixth:

http://newyorkssixth.com/newyorkssixthphotoblog/2007/07/schroeder-lofts-nearly-finished.html

They are way off but I did read on JClist or Kannet their is a small lot next to Shroeder Lofts that they own and that's going to start construction soon. I can't find the post but I think the guys who own The Bar Majestic are going to open a new place in that spot once it's done.

nafco

November 8th, 2007, 11:06 AM

nice pic macmini. good news that 70-90 columbus is going through. im actually surprised how quickly that has started from first mention of the project. apparently, 50 columbus is selling well.

ianmac47

November 8th, 2007, 06:13 PM

The only lot next to Scheorder is the parking lot and next to that a historic building, which I believe was a foundry. West of there along 10th are two embankments similar to sixth street that are supposed to be Newport buildings at some point. There is a lot on Pavonia which is a half block south of Schroeder which is causing the uproar on JCList and in the Hamilton Park neighborhood. That proposal is for a five or six story building on a lot that before it was rezoned was single family houses; it was rezoned apparently at the same time as Grove Pointe. Any Schroeder is basically finished except for the retail on the east corner along Erie, which is going to a bar and lounge called The Embankmet.

tbal

November 9th, 2007, 12:56 AM

It looks like the design for the Light Rail extension along the 6th Street Embankment may be underway soon (along with some other redesign of the city's transportation infrastructure).

Mayor Healy has apparently announced plans for a consortium of city and state departments to assemble for the purpose of studying and planning alternatives to create improved transportation around the city. Conceptual design work is slated to begin in January:

http://www.cityofjerseycity.com/uploadedFiles/Public_Notices/Press_Releases/PR%202007%2010%2031%20-%20Mayor%20Announces%20City%20Will%20Create%20A%20 Transportation%20Master%20Plan.pdf

One more little piece of news - over on JCList, Steven Fulop posted an update on the Newark Ave/Columbus Drive re-make project. He stated:

"The employment and Training building on Newark Avenue will have the RFP out to sell this month (city has been approached on several ideas that are very different)".

....This makes me wonder if the McDonald's and two adjacent buildings will be purchased by the city, turned over to a developer, and then demolished with the Training building to make way for another Grove Pointe (I believe they are already part of an area that has been deemed "an area in need of redevelopment")

Those lots are obviously very desirable since they are 1) directly across the street from the Grove PATH station, 2) relatively close to the waterfront, and 3) ideal for exposure to sunlight, since nothing can be built across the street from whatever is built there since that's where the PATH plaza is (and the exposure is to the East).

Considering how tall Panepinto is going with 70-90 Columbus, I'd be really surprised if we don't see another highrise built here.

JCMAN320

November 9th, 2007, 12:01 PM

Great news. I always thought that spot across from the Grove St had potential. I can't wait to see renderings soon!!

investordude

November 10th, 2007, 01:54 AM

This is spin, but I don't view it as a coincidence that its easier to find a building in Jersey City that highlights mediocre amenities: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/11/realestate/11cover.html?ref=realestate

At the high end of the market, I think people still want luxury. There's a lot more of that in Manhattan (duh) and the outer boroughs from what I can see. I still think it must be zoning, rather than some brilliant idea that people don't really want luxury. I'm sorry - people do want luxury and the amenities more than pay for themselves on resale if its at the high end of the luxury market.

STT757

November 11th, 2007, 01:45 PM

It looks like the design for the Light Rail extension along the 6th Street Embankment may be underway soon (along with some other redesign of the city's transportation infrastructure).

With regards to Light Rail, creating a new branch to Secaucus Jct will provide a new level of public transportation to Jersey City. Easy connections between all those NJ Transit commuter lines and the HBLRT.

I was also thinking if there's enough room they could build a toll road extension off the Turnpike's 15X to the Holland Tunnel toll plaza, they could charge a premium for this express by-pass. Something like $10.00 to avoid the backups on the Newark Bay extension or Pulaski Skyway, straight from 15X to the Holland Tunnel toll plaza. Cabs and buses heading to/from Newark Liberty International Airport could also use the by-pass.

JCMAN320

November 11th, 2007, 10:19 PM

Da-da-da-da-da, they're leavin' it

by Ken Thorbourne Sunday November 11, 2007, 5:26 PM

Mickey D's has until Dec. 31 to clear out of its Journal Square home.

According to Jersey City officials, the Hudson County Superior Court has ordered the fast food Goliath McDonald's gone by the end of the year so plans for a two-tower development on the old Hotel on the Square block can proceed.

The court issued the order in September, said Christopher Fiore, assistant executive director of the Jersey City Redevelopment Agency.

The agency condemned the property at 15-16 Journal Square and reached an agreement to buy it from owner Robert Kang for $2.1 million, Fiore said.

Under the terms of a redeveloper's agreement, the city will be reimbursed this money.
But McDonald's -- whose representatives didn't return phone calls to comment -- isn't satisfied with the amount the city wants to pay for the machinery and equipment it'll have to leave behind, Fiore said.

Fiore declined to say how much money the city is willing to shell out for the equipment since the matter is still in court.

According to several city sources, McDonald's has found another location in the Journal Square area along Kennedy Boulevard, but that information couldn't be confirmed with the burger maker.

Relocating the tenants of 15-16 Journal Square, which also houses a dentist's office and card shop, should be the final hurdle to moving forward with demolition plans for entire 1.5-acre site, city officials and the developer said. The card shop has already closed.

Lowell Harwood, one of the development partners, said Friday he expected the site to fully leveled before the next spring and the construction of the foundation to begin by the summer.

Harwood and his development partners own all the properties on the block. Besides the tenants at 15-16 Journal Square, the only one other remaining commercial tenant is Three Brothers Pizza at 1-7 Journal Square. Getting the pizzeria to move once his company has the requisite demolition permits won't be a problem, Harwood said.

The $500 million project is to consist of 1,500 residential units, 150,000 square feet of retail, and three levels of parking with 600 spaces.

investordude

November 12th, 2007, 12:15 AM

I'm not worried about this dispute. McDs won't take the public relations hit of holding up a popular urban redevelopment.

Having said that, they should be fairly compensated. I'm still unhappy JC used eminent domain here as a first resort.

macmini

November 12th, 2007, 05:02 AM

November 2007
Jersey City market skirts the housing storm

Prices hold steady, thousands of units being built, but brokers worry buyers may become scarce
By John Celock

http://www.therealdeal.net//issues/November_2007/images/1194221000.jpgIf cities were athletes, then Jersey City would be a long-distance runner. While foreclosures and the credit crunch are causing the residential housing market in much of the rest of New Jersey to cramp up, business in Jersey City has continued jogging forward at a healthy clip. Prices are holding steady, and thousands of new units are under construction or in development.

"This is a submarket that shares more with Manhattan than with the traditional submarket of New Jersey," said Peter Mocco, the developer behind Liberty Harbor North, a new neighborhood in Jersey City. "The subprime borrower never made up a meaningful percentage of the buyers in Jersey City."

But it's Jersey City's link with Manhattan that may eventually cause the city's booming housing market to falter. That's because Jersey City's market draws a lot of its business from young professionals, usually first-time buyers who've been priced out of New York City's market. Because of the credit crunch, those first-time buyers might not be able to borrow money as easily as before.

So far there have only been only a handful of foreclosures in Jersey City. Brokers say that most of these foreclosures have happened in down-and-out neighborhoods away from the booming waterfront and downtown area, so they largely haven't affected prices.

"If you look at sales at Hudson County specifically, while the state is down year-to-date in terms of number of sales by 3 percent, Hudson County is ahead by 16 percent," said Jeffrey Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group, a real estate research firm. "This is generally attributable to the strength of the Manhattan market."

Much of the new development in Jersey City has been one- and two-bedroom units in tall residential buildings. Starting prices are in the mid-$300,000s for a one-bedroom and $500,000 for a two-bedroom. The average price per square foot is about $500, a figure that has remained stable this year.

The market is expected to absorb nearly 3,000 new units in the next few years, with another 10,000 projected over the next decade. On average, Jersey City has seen about 1,000 new units developed each year, making it one of the most construction-intense areas in the New York metro region.

Those new units are largely aimed at young professionals, many of whom work in Manhattan. Their personal incomes and credit scores may be high, but experts say that more scrutiny is being paid to loan applications. Anxious they won't qualify for mortgages at reasonable rates, applicants may decide to continue renting.

Jackie Urgo, president of the Marketing Directors, a real estate firm that manages sales of high-end condos in the metro area, said that she and others have been advising clients to make sure their finances are in order and suggesting they apply for a government-sponsored mortgage, which is easier to qualify for in the current market. However, Fannie Mae loans are capped at $417,000, so consumers typically need to take a second mortgage for the remainder of the property. Many of Urgo's clients in Jersey City work in finance and plan to use their bonuses to pay off their second mortgages.

So far, no projects have been canceled. George Filopoulos, president of Metrovest, which is constructing the Beacon, a 1,200-unit, 10-building complex several blocks west of downtown Jersey City, said that the first phase of the project has almost sold out. Filopoulos said he has not seen much of an impact from the credit crunch on his primarily New York-based buyers.

Mocco noted that the first 667 units of his Liberty Harbor project are 90 percent sold. Interest is strong, he indicated, in future phases, and as many as 10,000 units could be built.

Yet to make sure that sales maintain momentum, developers are offering more incentives. Free parking, two years' free maintenance and free storage have become commonplace add-ons. These are in addition to health clubs, pools, in-house cinemas and poker rooms.

One unusual amenity is coming to Donald Trump's two-tower complex in Jersey City, called Trump Plaza Jersey City, which is under construction. A rain simulator will offer Amazonian downpours and North European fogs.

JC also in the NY Times
Pieds Can Be à Terre Here, Too
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/11/realestate/11njzo.html?_r=1&n=Top%2fClassifieds%2fReal%20Estate%2fLocations%2f New%20Jersey&oref=slogin

ianmac47

November 12th, 2007, 10:55 AM

I was also thinking if there's enough room they could build a toll road extension off the Turnpike's 15X to the Holland Tunnel toll plaza, they could charge a premium for this express by-pass. Something like $10.00 to avoid the backups on the Newark Bay extension or Pulaski Skyway, straight from 15X to the Holland Tunnel toll plaza. Cabs and buses heading to/from Newark Liberty International Airport could also use the by-pass.

This is an appalling idea. Transportation dollars should be spent on building mass transit, single occupancy vehicle corridors for more cars. Also, the reason 78 and 139 are congested in the morning is because there are 4 lanes of freeway traffic pouring into a two lane tunnel. Adding more freeway lanes will only mean more cars idling in congestion waiting to get into the tunnel.

nafco

November 12th, 2007, 10:58 AM

"The market is expected to absorb nearly 3,000 new units in the next few years, with another 10,000 projected over the next decade. On average, Jersey City has seen about 1,000 new units developed each year, making it one of the most construction-intense areas in the New York metro region."

Maybe I'm misunderstanding this quote but shouldnt there be a lot more than 3000 units made in the next few years. Harwoods towers in JSQ alone will have about 1500. between the beacon, 77 hudson, athena, trump, LHN and everything in newport, there should be well over 3000 in the next few years for sure:confused:

tbal

November 12th, 2007, 07:15 PM

I agree. That number does seem off...I remember a few months (or maybe a year?) ago, an article put the incoming housing supply at 16,000 units.

Isn't Liberty Harbor alone supposed to be 6,000-8,000 units (I know they say it may take 20 years to complete, so maybe 3,000-4,000 over the next decade?)

Then you have all the Newport buildings, along with mega-projects like 77 Hudson, Trump, Monaco, 70-90 Columbus, 1 Journal Square, The Beacon, Hamilton Square, etc., not to mention all the smaller projects which combined could add another 2,000 units (380 Columbus, 361 Columbus, 274 Newark Ave, 215 Newark Ave, the Bates building, 109 Baldwin Ave, etc.).

btw - activity has resumed on 369 Fifth Street (4-story building), as well as 274 Newark Ave (5-story building), after a few months of dead silence...also, (for what it's worth), the mysterious blue van that has been sitting at 361 Newark Ave was moved to a different spot on the site at some point last week (of course, this has happened before, and God only knows why they keep moving it, but the proposed building popped up on the Zoning Board agenda again last week with revisions to its design, so...?)

ianmac47

November 13th, 2007, 10:07 AM

the mysterious blue van that has been sitting at 361 Newark Ave was moved to a different spot on the site at some point last week (of course, this has happened before, and God only knows why they keep moving it

Alternate Side Parking. :D

JCMAN320

November 14th, 2007, 04:29 PM

Eatery Signs Lease at Gull’s Cove

By Eric Peterson

JERSEY CITY - Sawa Steakhouse & Sushi Bar has signed a lease for 3,800 sf at Gull’s Cove, Metro Homes’ new mixed-use project here. The location will be the third for the Eatontown-based Sawa, which has eateries there and at Pier Village in Long Branch. Terms of the lease were not disclosed.

“Jersey City is an up-and-coming place to be,” says Anne Wagar, Sawa’s managing partner. “Gull’s Cover lends itself to fine dining and take-out for singles, couples and families.”

Sawa Steakhouse & Sushi Bar will open as part of the first phase of Gull’s Cover, located in this city’s Downtown area at 205 Luis Munoz Marin Blvd., overlooking Liberty Harbor and Lower Manhattan. Phase one will include a 16-story condo tower of 321 residences, and Gull’s Cove will build out to a total of 432 residences and 30,000 sf of ground-floor retail space. Gull’s Cove itself is part of the larger 80-acre Liberty Harbor North Redevelopment District.

“Sawa is a good fit for Gull’s Cove,” says Dean Geibel, managing partner of the Hoboken-based Metro Homes. “It will attract an upscale customer base and will provide another amenity for our residents.”

ianmac47

November 15th, 2007, 12:30 PM

According to someone on JCList, a construction fence and preliminary demolition work has *finally* begun on Majestic II

Renderings on JCVibe:
http://www.jerseycityvibe.com/iindex.php?option=com_zoom&Itemid=121&catid=101

Photos of the Existing conditions:
http://www.newyorkssixth.com/2006/12/majestic-ii.html

JCMAN320

November 15th, 2007, 07:20 PM

Damm it Ian you beat me to it. I saw the demo today lol. Good job. :)

tbal

November 15th, 2007, 08:10 PM

Heavy equipment was delivered to the site of 213 Newark Ave today, presumably to continue site prep work. Some minor site clearing work took place 2-3 weeks ago, but the site has been quiet since (until this afternoon).

Looks like Treetop is joining a growing list of developers who are banking on the real estate market resuming an upward trend within the next 6-12 months.

To see a rendering of 213 Newark Ave., go to www.treetopdev.com (http://www.treetopdev.com), click on "Current Projects" in the menu on the right, and 213 Newark Ave will show up in the list.

JCMAN320

November 16th, 2007, 10:45 AM

Film classics at the Loew's

by The Jersey Journal Friday November 16, 2007, 1:37 AM

Three classic Otto Preminger films and book signings by the author of a new tome on the actor-director take place this weekend at the historic Loew's Jersey Theater in Jersey City's Journal Square.

1950's "Where the Sidewalk Ends" screens at 7:55 tonight. Tomorrow, see "Angel Face" (1952) at 3:55 p.m. and "Laura" (1944) at 8:25 p.m.

Foster Hirsch, author of "Otto Preminger: The Man Who Would Be King," will sign copies 55 minutes before each show.

Tickets are $6; $4 for seniors and children 12 and under. Discounts available for multiple shows.

For information, call (201) 798-6055.

http://www.loewsjersey.org/

JCMAN320

November 16th, 2007, 10:52 AM

Fund-raiser tonight a multimedia extravaganza

by The Jersey Journal Friday November 16, 2007, 1:48 AM

La'Bad Productions presents a VIP fundraiser for the film "N U Don't Stop," an independent movie being produced by Tracy La'Bad of Jersey City that explores hip hop life culture as well as issues faces by today's youth such as HIV and self-esteem, at 7 tonight at the Canco Lofts, 50 Dey St., Jersey City.

The event will feature live scenes from the film, music from the soundtrack and spoken word.

For information, e-mail tracylabad0@hotmail.com or call (201) 876-8686.

Tracy La Bad
http://www.nj.com/entertainment/jjournal/index.ssf?/base/entertainment-0/1194591644141440.xml&coll=3

http://www.cancolofts.com/

JCMAN320

November 16th, 2007, 11:27 AM

Jersey City announces new master citywide transportation plan

http://jerseycitynj.gov/uploadedFiles/Public_Notices/Press_Releases/PR%202007%2010%2031%20-%20Mayor%20Announces%20City%20Will%20Create%20A%20 Transportation%20Master%20Plan.pdf

tbal

November 17th, 2007, 08:04 PM

This 20-unit building near Journal Square is moving ahead with structural steel having been assembled over the course of the past few weeks. From the size of the beams used (and considering the number of apartments the building will have when completed), it almost seems as though the garage will have more than one level. This building could end up being noticeably taller than it's 4-story neighbor (to the west).

View to the Southwest:

http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/111707004.jpg?t=1195343934

View to the Southeast:

http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/111707006.jpg?t=1195344163

investordude

November 17th, 2007, 09:31 PM

Hey jcman, I glanced at your transit document, but its not clear to me if it links the Beacon and Journal Square by public transit (light rail or PATH or something better than a bus). In my opinion, that's the most glaringly obvious missing component of the public transit system in JC>

tbal

November 17th, 2007, 10:36 PM

I really don't see much else happening other than the construction of the 6th Street Embankment spur of the Light Rail system eventually being built. Seems like the Port Authority is getting nothing done right now except its share of the WTC. There was talk of a one-mile extension of the PATH to Newark Int'l Airport a few years ago, but that is supposed to cost at least $500 million and it still seems pretty far away from happening (and, that project wouldn't require any tunneling!!).

There's no way that, in the foreseeable future, an extension of the PATH to anywhere in Jersey City will happen - it's just too expensive and the PA takes too long to implement anything that matters to its customers. Look how much it's going to cost to tunnel under the Hudson to create THE Tunnel....several billion dollars (and it should cost a few billion less, but this is what happens when there's an excessive number of engineering firms/General Contractors/governmental agencies/labor unions/etc. involved).

NJ Transit at least can get things done in a reasonable amount of time (HBLR, Newark LR, and the River line in South Jersey, and the purchase and delivery of several ALP46 locomotives and Comet V double-decker rail cars).

tbal

November 18th, 2007, 06:42 PM

109 Columbus
Probably the most interesting thing I have to report is the fresh, bright pink markings at 109 Columbus. It appears that steel is about to go up (finally):

(note the two pink vertical markings on the wall in the back)
http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/111807008.jpg?t=1195424278

Another (close-up) photo:
http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/111807007.jpg?t=1195424355

Crescent Court
Heading west, here's what's happening at the site of M & M's Crescent Court (4-story condo building):
http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/111807001.jpg?t=1195424475

http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/111807003.jpg?t=1195424537

Liberty Harbor North
I have to say that this is by far the highest quality project I've seen built in Jersey City so far...the amount of detail being put into the whole "mini-city" is amazing!

A group of row houses along Grand Street:
http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/111807015.jpg?t=1195424651

A look at three of the retail slots that are going in under the row houses (and yes, they actually had banners made to replicate how the finished storefronts should look):
http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/111807016.jpg?t=1195424708

Retail along Marin Blvd. at the Gull's Cove building (actually, at least 3 of the sides of the building look like this, with retail):
http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/111807019.jpg?t=1195424816

Majestic II

The whole site is now fenced off:
http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/111807011.jpg?t=1195425176

A look at the demo work that has already taken place:
http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/111807012.jpg?t=1195425205

213 Newark Ave
Some equipment was dropped off toward the end of last week. I am guessing they'll start working either tomorrow (Monday) or a week from tomorrow (considering that Thursday's a holiday):

http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/111807005.jpg?t=1195425362

macmini

November 18th, 2007, 08:35 PM

Great photo's tbal Liberty Harbor North is looking really good hands down my favorite project in JC.

I glanced at your transit document, but its not clear to me if it links the Beacon and Journal Square by public transit (light rail or PATH or something better than a bus). In my opinion, that's the most glaringly obvious missing component of the public transit system in JC>The Beacon and Journal Square don't need to be linked be the Light Rail or the Path. If my fat a@@ can walk from The Beacon to the JSQ in 10 minutes then the bus should be enough for any one to lazy to walk.

JCMAN320

November 18th, 2007, 11:05 PM

Tbal great pics; great to see these little projects go up and resume so that it will fin in the smaller gaps in the city.

Mac I agree I walk from Saint Peter's College to JSQ along Bergen Ave to JSQ quite often and it is easy walk, teh Bergen Ave bus should be more then enough.

nafco

November 19th, 2007, 11:08 AM

Although I agree that the specific walk from the Beacon to the JSQ path is managable, I think that a north-south link using a light rail system could well serve the middle or west side of the city. It could link to existing light rail and PATH stops and would really help the middle of the city to grow without the need for extra parking or car traffic.

ianmac47

November 19th, 2007, 02:48 PM

North-south transportation in Hudson County is horrendous. I think in the long term, 50 to 100 years, the only real solution will be a subway line or two under the spine of the Palisades. Local and state politicians are too busy feeding at the trough for now though to be bothered improving transportation so the only real solution is for people with means to avoid areas too far west of the downtown transportation hubs and for everyone else to either clog the streets with single occupancy vehicles or attempt a journey using the dozens of jitneys on JFK Blvd.

JCMAN320

November 19th, 2007, 03:27 PM

JCMAN320

November 19th, 2007, 03:57 PM

Historic wall largely preserved under new townhouse plan

Monday, November 19, 2007

The Jersey City Historic Preservation Commission has taken off tonight's agenda an item dealing with granting Manhattan businessman Steve Hyman permission to tear down the embankment's "historic" wall to build townhouses.

And with good reason.

Hyman has a new plan, which preserves most of the wall.

Hyman has been showing this new plan to city officials since the federal Surface Transportation Board ruled last month that Conrail never properly abandoned an unused railroad depot.

According to Charles Montange, an attorney the city hired, the ruling means Hyman's deed to the property will be invalidated and Conrail will be forced to sell the property to the city for $3 million - the price Hyman reportedly paid for the six-block stretch in July 2005.

Hyman is planning a public presentation of his new plan, which includes preserving 75 percent of the footprint on top of the elevated embankment as open space, at the next City Council caucus scheduled for Nov. 26.

The HPC has put the proposal on the agenda for its Dec. 17 meeting.

KEN THORBOURNE

JCMAN320

November 19th, 2007, 03:59 PM

Vote on historic status for St. John's chruch postponed

by The Jersey Journal Monday November 19, 2007, 2:43 PM

The Jersey City Planning Board has postponed a vote on the historic designation of St. John's Episcopal Church in Jersey City.

Earlier this month, the church won the backing of the city's Historic Preservation Commission.

The planning board was scheduled to hear the matter tonight but will instead take it up Dec. 20.

ianmac47

November 19th, 2007, 11:32 PM

Ianmac although I agree with you that there should be a lightrail going North to South through Hudson County someday, we have city buses that do a good job. The number 10, Bergen Ave, Summit Ave, the 87, the 80, Montgomery Westside, etc... do a good job. All of those buses are city buses, not jitneys. The jitneys primarily run to North Hudson from JSQ into the Heights. North Hudson can use more regular bus service I agree, but don't act like there is no reliable means of North to South mass transit through Hudson County.

Buses and trams are no substitute for subways with dedicated rail lines that avoid traffic congestion on streets; also, trains have ten times the capacity. Housing demands over the next century, I suspect, will necessitate a subway construction in Hudson and up into Bergen County, and of course across the river. Most of the municipalities along the Jersey Side of the Hudson river are denser urban areas than many outer boroughs of New York with MTA subway access. Potential of Hudson and southern Bergen county really is entirely dependent on transportation.

investordude

November 20th, 2007, 01:51 AM

http://www.globest.com/news/1038_1038/newjersey/166076-1.html

Small square footage though. I wonder as Jersey City's vacancy rate drops if we'll start seeing major office construction or if Hudson Yards and WTC rebuilding will scare people off from building JC office market more until those projects are done. I think (at the risk of getting slammed by JC fans) that Manhattan is more desirable if people are building office space there, but my intuition is Jersey City office space will always be cheaper because the technical challenges and land prices are still significantly less than either WTC or Hudson Yards. (ie, we get class B Manhattan tenants moving to class A Jersey City space while class A Manhattan tenants upgrade to the newest space in WTC and Hudson Yards)

JCMAN320

November 20th, 2007, 05:56 AM

Landmarking hearing for historic church is put off to Dec. 11

Tuesday, November 20, 2007
By KEN THORBOURNE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

A decision by the Jersey City Planning Board on whether to recommend St. John's Episcopal Church on Summit Avenue for landmark status will have to wait.

To accommodate attorneys representing the Episcopal Diocese of Newark, the item has been removed from tonight's agenda and carried over to the Dec. 11 meeting, city officials said.

The group pushing for landmark status for the unused, 137-year-old Gothic structure isn't pleased with the last-minute cancellation.

"We sent out notices, e-mails. Now we have to ask everyone to postpone their plans because the Episcopal Diocese pulled another stunt," said, John Gomez, founder and former president of the Jersey City Landmarks Conservancy.

Carter Echols, spokeswoman for the diocese, said the church wants to "resolve this as quickly as possible. But it's a holiday week and our attorney isn't available."

The Episcopal Diocese wants to sell the property and is convinced landmark status - which would save the exterior of the church - would reduce its value on the open market, sources said.

In the 1950s and 1960s, the church became a center for the civil rights movement in Jersey City, Gomez said.

Last month, the Historic Preservation Commission recommended the church for landmark status. The City Council makes the final decision, but won't act until the Planning Board makes a recommendation.